Former West Ham and Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole says Rio Ferdinand’s Premier League titles put him ahead of Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk in the list of all-time greats.
Away from titles and solely based on performance, I think Ferdinand would get into most teams over Van Dijk. The former England defender was a far superior defender over a longer period, too.
Ferdinand won six Premier League titles during his career and won the Champions League in 2008, on top of a Club World Cup and three League Cups.
Van Dijk has the same number of Champions League and Club World Cup winners’ medals in his locker, but he is lacking in the Premier League department, with just one title to his name.
In recent seasons the Dutch centre-back has been compared to the greats of the English game. Some have even touted him to be the very best, which we’ve always found laughable.
Joe Cole thinks the comparisons made between Van Dijk and Ferdinand are a little off.
Speaking to the FIVE YouTube channel, Cole explained: “Van Dijk’s got a long way to go until he gets close to Rio.
“That is with the most respect to Van Dijk who I think is the best around at the moment but he needs to win multiple league titles. I think centre-halves can get judged on what they win and the teams they play in but he needs to win multiple things.”
