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The 50 Greatest Defenders Of All Time Have Been Named And Ranked By Fans

The 50 Greatest Defenders Of All Time Have Been Named And Ranked By Fans

One man is clear of the rest...

Daniel Marland

Daniel Marland

Football fans have ranked the 20 greatest defenders of all time and it is Italian legend Paolo Maldini who comes out on top.

The former AC Milan star spent a staggering 25 years at the San Siro, winning 7 Serie A titles and 5 European Cups.

He dominates the rankings earning over 3000 more upvotes than former teammate Franco Baresi.

PA

Check out the top 50 courtesy of Ranker below.

50. Diego Godin

49. Ciro Ferrara

48. Javier Zanetti

47. Hans-Peter Briegel

46. Jamie Carragher

45. Jaap Stam

44. Morten Olsen

PA

43. Manfred Kaltz

42. Emlyn Hughes

41. Andreas Brehme

40. Gerard Pique

39. Maicon

38. Aldair

37. Dani Alves

PA

36. Philipp Lahm

35. Antonio Cabrini

34. Paul Breitner

33. Nilton Santos

32. Carles Puyol

31. Gary Neville

Image
PA

30. Marcelo

29. Fabio Cannavaro

28. Virgil van Dijk

27. Roberto Carlos

26. Jurgen Kohler

25. Sol Campbell

PA

24. Phil Neal

23. Ruud Krol

22. Wim Suurbier

21. Claudio Gentile

20. Thiago Silva

19. Lucio

PA

18. Giuseppe Bergomi

17. Alan Hansen

16. Sergio Ramos

15. Luis Pereira

14. Lilian Thuram

13. Fulvio Collovati

PA

12. Mauro Tassotti

11. Alessandro Nesta

10. Alessandro Costacurta

9. Giacinto Facchetti

8. Daniel Passarella

7. Frank Rijkaard

Image
PA

6. Bobby Moore

5. Cesare Maldini

4. Cafu

3. Franz Beckenbauer

2. Franco Baresi

1. Paolo Maldini

The list belongs to Maldini and if you ever watched him play, you can understand why.

He played 902 games for AC Milan in his career as well as 126 times for Italy, meaning he is the true definition of consistency.

'Il Capitano' taught an entire generation that defending could be as breathtaking as attacking if you were one of the best.

Maldini and runner-up on the list Baresi were part of the famous Milan side that went 58 games unbeaten from 1991 to 1993.

The pair played together 196 times and conceded only 23 goals; that's a goal every 8.5 games.

It's clear to see why many fans think Maldini is the true 'GOAT' when it comes to defending.

Who do you think is the greatest defender of all time?

Let us know in the comments.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Football News, Paolo Maldini, Cafu, Football, Franz Beckenbauer