Manchester United legend Wes Brown gave his verdict on whether Rio Ferdinand was better than Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk ahead of the huge clash between the two rivals this weekend. As anticipation builds for Sunday’s heavyweight showdown at Anfield, the former Red Devils star reignited one of football’s most heated debates by picking a side between two of the greatest Premier League defenders.
The great debate: Van Dijk vs Ferdinand
Van Dijk has spent years silencing strikers in the Liverpool backline, having previously done so for the likes of Celtic and Southampton, but Brown believes that there is simply no contest between the Reds star and his old team-mate, Ferdinand, who carved out his legacy as one of the best defenders the top-flight has ever seen.
"I’d 100 percent of the time pick Rio over Virgil van Dijk. Of course, I could be being biased, but if you’ve seen Rio you know he’s just different class," he said in an interview with
Brown praised Ferdinand’s flawless reading of the game, his pace, and his almost telepathic anticipation that allowed him to neutralise danger without resorting to reckless sliding tackles.
"Individually, he can do everything, and he has such poise that he’s rarely scrambling around for a slide tackle," Brown argued. "He reads the game immaculately, has pace, is always in the right position to make his job easier. He won so many trophies to show just how important he was to the side."
AdvertisementAFPVidic and Rio: A duo for the ages
Brown also waxed lyrical about Ferdinand’s legendary partnership with Nemanja Vidic, calling it one of the greatest defensive pairings the Premier League has ever seen. They played 197 matches together racking up over 16,500 minutes of high-octane action in England and Europe.
"He and Vidic were the ideal partners for one another," he opined. "Occasionally, you just get partnerships like that, which don’t come around too often. The two of them completely made each other work to the best of their abilities, and it spurred Rio on to get even better."
Between them, the duo anchored United’s defence during one of the club’s most dominant eras, collecting five Premier League titles, a Champions League, and countless clean sheets to boot.
Van Dijk’s modern challenge: The game has changed
To his credit, Van Dijk has faced challenges Ferdinand never did. Under Jurgen Klopp, and now Arne Slot, the Dutch skipper has had to defend in an era of high-risk, high-reward football, covering huge spaces behind an aggressive press. Modern defenders, as Brown acknowledges, are not just stoppers; they’re also creators. Van Dijk’s inch-perfect diagonals to Mohamed Salah have become iconic, and his role as a quasi-playmaker is something Ferdinand rarely needed to do in the early 2000s. That said, Brown believes Rio would have thrived in any era.
"If you talk about individuals, then it’s Ferdinand above Van Dijk for me every time, but it’s not by miles," he said. "I think Rio was the best defender to play for United, and perhaps in the league."
Van Dijk, meanwhile, has his own accolades, including finishing second to Lionel Messi in the 2019 Ballon d’Or voting, an almost unthinkable feat for a defender in the modern game.
Getty Images SportWhat comes next?
Beyond the nostalgia and punditry, the focus now shifts to Sunday’s blockbuster clash. And if history is anything to go by, Anfield is no happy hunting ground for Manchester United. Just one win in their last nine visits tells its own story. Even last season’s gritty 2-2 draw felt like a minor miracle, as United clung on against a late Liverpool barrage. With Ruben Amorim fighting to silence his critics after a shaky start as manager, and Mohamed Salah chasing yet another milestone, this encounter could be season-defining.
"My hope is that we leave it all on the pitch out there at Liverpool, that we don’t hold back and have regrets," he said. "Liverpool have had a few defeats recently, but they’ve won plenty this season already, and their squad is really good. They probably have the strongest squad in the league at the moment, but I really hope we can catch them out and off their guard."
Brown called for a “disciplined defensive display” combined with bold, fearless attacking intent to silence the Kop.
"First of all, put in a really disciplined defensive display," he said. "But if you get that right, you’ve also got to attack with freedom. Liverpool are looking a bit vulnerable, and they can be exposed, so that needs to be exploited."
Liverpool, though, will not be in a forgiving mood. With Salah firing again, Van Dijk leading from the back, and Slot’s side looking to bounce back after three successive defeats, United will need to summon the spirit of old to emerge unscathed.