442 ranks the 10 BEST center backs: Man City duo lead, Alaba 3rd, Van Dijk 9th
Center back is a difficult part of the pitch to judge though. Perhaps some defenders are better than they seem and simply playing in a difficult system – while others are not necessarily the best players but protected by their side's shape.
Well, British football magazine 442 has analyzed the best out there right now with an order.
There was an aura around Ronald Araujo as soon as he landed at Barcelona. He was barely out of his teens yet looked fully-formed physically and prepared to lock European strikers up in the Barça backline.
His supreme build is matched with his ability on the ball, as you'd expect at that club. While there have been plenty of light weight defenders who have thrived in Catalonia – the shorter likes of Javier Mascherano and Carles Puyol – Araujo is very much cut from a cloth of defenders his parents would have watched.
He bullies, he battles. But he's as intelligent as Cules would expect, too. That he can also play at right-back and keep the likes of Vinicius quiet, is proof of his raw materials, too.
Previously the undisputed best center back in the world, over the last 12 months, Virgil van Dijk has failed to live up to the ridiculous standards he has set over the last half-decade. However, his qualities certainly haven't diminished, and Liverpool still rely on the Dutchman's presence in some of the biggest games.
Van Dijk transformed Liverpool into an unstoppable force when he joined from Southampton in 2018, and his pace, intelligence and ability to command the defence certainly hasn't been lost from his game. He may not ever reach his incredible heights of yesteryear but even now, he's one of the best center backs in the world. Of that, there is no doubt.
Tenacious. Clever. Resolute. These are
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