Joe Cole has picked Steven Gerrard as the ‘most complete’ midfielder in Premier League history but claimed Virgil van Dijk needs to win titles in order to be at Rio Ferdinand’s level.
The former West Ham and Chelsea star spent 18 seasons in the English top-flight and faced off against some of the league’s greatest ever midfielders, from Gerrard to Roy Keane and Patrick Vieira. The position is one of the most hotly debated in terms of picking the best ever, with a wealth of talent and leadership throughout the years.
Cole played centrally during his early years at West Ham and at points during his Chelsea spell, and the ex-England international picked Arsenal general Vieira as the toughest to play against - but backed former Reds captain Gerrard as the ‘most complete’ and the player he’d have in his team.
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"Vieira all-time hardest to play against,” Cole told the FIVE YouTube show. “I’d say the most complete is Stevie because he can do everything. I’d say the most complete is Stevie. You can put context on the question, because if I’m managing a mid-table and I can have any of them players at the age of 21, I’m taking Stevie because you know even when things are going wrong he can drag you out. If you ask most people, Frank would be third on that list.”
Asked to compare Dutch giant Van Dijk with Ferdinand, Cole claimed that the Liverpool defender ‘has a long way to go’ before he reaches the former Manchester United defender’s level and needs to win more titles.
“Van Dijk’s got a long way to go until he gets close to Rio,” Cole added. “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.”
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