Phil Jones asked to pick between Virgil van Dijk and Rio Ferdinand and gives very controversial answer

Former Manchester United defender Phil Jones has revealed who he believes is the better defender out of Virgil van Dijk and Rio Ferdinand.

Jones, 32, came through the ranks at Blackburn Rovers but is best known for his 12 years playing for United, having been signed by Sir Alex Ferguson for a reported fee of £16m in 2011.

During his second season at United, Jones won the Premier League and played 17 league games in the 2012/13 campaign.

At times, he will have no doubt been watching and learning from his then-teammate Ferdinand before he left for QPR in 2014.

But would he choose his former United pal over Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk?

“Rio [Ferdinand] has everything you want from a modern-day centre-half,” Jones told Jamie Redknapp via Sky Sports.

“He’s commanding, great on the ball, and he was a threat in both boxes.”

Redknapp suggested that Ferdinand had to deal with striker partnerships during his career, compared to Van Dijk, who often plays against one central striker, which is the go-to tactic for most modern managers.

But Jones dismissed this, adding how it would be “harsh” to say that the Dutchman would not have had success in Ferdinand’s era.

Phil Jones and Rio Ferdinand were Man Utd teammates (Credit:Getty)

“I think he [Van Dijk] still would’ve been top,” Jones said.

“I gotta go with Van Dijk just because what he has given Liverpool for these five to six years has been incredible.

“He might have had a dip in form over the previous four to five months, but he’s right up there again now.

"I think about the players we would come up against when we were fighting for titles, so you watch Liverpool and think, ‘How are we gonna score if Van Dijk is on the pitch?’.

“He’s a top player. I can’t deny that, so I’ll go with Van Dijk.”

His choice came as a surprise to several fans in the comments, who were quick to give their take on X.

One said: “I can see why [Sir Alex] Ferguson said that Phil Jones could become United's best-ever player. Clearly got a very good football IQ.”

Another added: “Rio, any day of the week!”

A third commented: “VVD is absolutely miles ahead of Rio.”