Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand has named his five strongest centre-backs in Premier League history, and included Liverpool superstar Virgil van Dijk in his list.
Click through the gallery above to see Ferdinand's top five EPL centre-back picks!
The Reds defender is widely regarded as the best player in his position in the world right now, a sentiment shared by Red Devils legend Ferdinand.
Speaking about Van Dijk in a recent interview, the former England star said that, while he would not compare the Dutchman to the other great defenders of his era, he does consider him among the five best Premier League centre-backs of all time.
"I love him. I think he's the best in the world right now," Ferdinand said on The Beautiful Game Podcast.
"He's undoubtedly a top player, but I think he's not fighting against the depth of other central defenders that was in my era.
"If we were talking about top drawer centre-halves, I could name five, six, seven, eight, nine in my era, whereas I don't think I could fill my whole hand in this era.
"And that's no disrespect (to the current defenders), but we're talking about top players here.
"Though I think in any era, he looks like a top player.
"If I was naming my top five centre-halves, I think (Nemanja) Vidic, (Vincent) Kompany, (John) Terry, Van Dijk and (Sol) Campbell. They would be my five."
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Van Dijk has played 157 times in the Premier League for Southampton and Liverpool, scoring 13 goals and lifting the title once so far.
What do you make of Ferdinand's top five? Let us know in the comments section below.
