Rio Ferdinand Names Three Best Centre-Backs In World Football, Explains Why He Snubbed Ruben Dias

Rio Ferdinand snubbed Ruben Dias after he named Manchester United summer signing Raphael Varane as one of the top three centre-backs in world football.

Varane, 28, made a shock exit from Real Madrid in the summer and completed a sensational move to United in a deal that could rise to £42m.

The French defender enjoyed a trophy-laden career at Madrid and forged a superb partnership with Paris Saint-Germain star Sergio Ramos.

United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will be hopeful that Varane, who lifted four Champions League titles with Madrid, can strike up a successful partnership with Harry Maguire.

Ferdinand has now praised the 2018 World Cup winner for his winning mentality and believes Varane is one of the world’s best defenders alongside Ramos and Virgil van Dijk.

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Dias has become an instrumental figure under Pep Guardiola after Manchester City splashed out a whopping £51m fee, plus Nicolas Otamendi, to sign him from Benfica in 2020.

Ferdinand praised the 24-year-old Portuguese defender for his impact at City, but he insisted that Dias missed out on his top three picks due to “consistency” over a period of time.

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• ​The 10 best centre-backs in the world right now, named and ranked​

Speaking on Rio Ferdinand Presents FIVE, the United legend said: “When he's fit, over the last couple of years he's [Van Dijk] been the go-to guy.

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“He had the biggest impact on a team, certainly in terms of centre-backs, over probably the last three years.

“Varane, I would say, is up there. Him and Varane, [Sergio] Ramos in previous years, as well, they have been the top boys.

“It's that consistency and the ability to win. Varane is unrivalled alongside Ramos in terms of winning, but with the way his form has been over the last three years, Van Dijk has been immense, man, he's been crazy.

“In terms of a signing, Raphael Varane for Manchester United... He's what I've been asking for over the last three or four years, or five years.

“[Ruben] Dias has been great, but he only played last season. I'm talking about consistency over a number of years. Those guys are probably apart at the moment.”

Topics: Rio Ferdinand, Ruben Dias, Raphael Varane, Sergio Ramos, Virgil Van Dijk, Football

Adnan Riaz

Adnan Riaz is a journalist for SPORTbible. He studied for a B.A. in History at the University of York and followed it up with an M.A. in Multimedia Journalism at MMU. Before he started writing about sports, he spent over four years in the gaming press. He has worked for several publications, including Hardcore Gamer, LADbible and the Manchester Evening News. Follow him on Twitter to find out what he is working on next. Got a story tip for Adnan? Email him: [email protected]

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