He is one of just six players—three of whom were his teammates at Juventus—to have won all international club competitions recognised by FIFA and UEFA—not including the relatively newly introduced Conference League—and also picked up seven Serie A titles for good measure.

9 Leonardo Bonucci 

Career Span: 2005-2024 

 

Leonardo Bonucci is most well-known for his exploits as part of a terrifyingly effective defensive unit at Juventus, alongside Giorgio Chiellini and Andrea Barzagli. The recently retired central defender, who called time on his career in May 2024, brought his expansive style to a defensive unit that was otherwise more rugged in nature, spraying pinpoint long-range passes across the field from the heart of defence.

Like Scirea before him, Bonucci's unique qualities played no small role in establishing Juventus' modern reign of dominance in the 2010s, which saw the defender collect eight league titles—which would have been nine had he not left the Bianconeri to spend the 2017/18 season at AC Milan.

8 Gerard Pique 

Career Span: 2004-2022 

 

Gerard Pique is the latest central defender on this list to have played his part in ensuring his team scales the highest heights. In fact, he is one of only four players in history to win the Champions League in successive seasons, having done so with Manchester United and then Barcelona in 2008 and 2009.

Pique paired a commanding physique with an aura of calm on the ball, joining in with build-up play with all the assuredness of a central midfielder while also dominating opponents in the air. Barcelona's trademark passing style required plenty of composure from those in defence and Pique provided that in spades, leading the club to numerous trophies on his watch, including trebles in both 2009 and 2015.

7 Rio Ferdinand 

Career Span: 1995-2015 

 

Rio Ferdinand is possibly the player who defines the rather nebulous term 'Rolls-Royce defender'. Quibbles about what that phrase actually means aside, it does sum up the former Manchester United legend rather well—a centre-back who possessed a rare combination of power and grace.

Ferdinand stood out particularly in England as a unique central defender at the highest level, with his ball-playing style standing in stark contrast to the profile of equally high-profile English defenders of his generation such as John Terry. However, Ferdinand was certainly no slouch as a ball-winner, with his incredible pace and tackling ability in addition to his technical skills marking him out as one of England's best-ever defenders.

6 Virgil van Dijk 

Career Span: 2011-Present 

 

Virgil van Dijk was, at one stage, a central defender whose myriad qualities and commanding air saw him revered as the best in the world in his position by a margin rarely seen, possessing an aura of invincibility that seemed to affect opposition forwards mentally.

The Dutchman is best known for a patient, considered defending style that, when paired with his exceptional pace and strength, makes him extremely difficult to beat in one-on-one duels. His composure in defensive situations carries through to his ability on the ball.

The sight of Van Dijk launching a pinpoint pass from defence into the path of an onrushing Liverpool forward—often Mohamed Salah—is by no means out of the ordinary and was a weapon frequently utilised during Jurgen Klopp's successful reign at Anfield. He even won the UEFA Men's Player of the Year Award—a rare instance of a defender claiming an individual goal ahead of forwards and midfielders.

5 Alessandro Nesta 

Career Span: 1993-2014 

In fifth place is Alessandro Nesta, and he is perhaps the first of the defenders on this list whose name—in certain company—is discussed with an almost deity-esque reverence. The Italian—now head coach of Serie A side Monza—was undoubtedly one of the finest defenders of all time.

His elegance on the ball somehow also extended to his tackling, which he managed to turn into something resembling graceful art at times. Any negative connotations of his defensive ability drawn from that artistic comparison are misplaced, however. Nesta was one of the most physically dominant defenders in football history, capable of man-marking a forward into non-existence and keeping pace with even the speediest striker.

4 Bobby Moore 

Career Span: 1958-1983 

The image of Bobby Moore holding the World Cup trophy aloft in 1966 is the most iconic in the history of the England national team, inspiring a longing for a repeat within the nation that has yet to be sated.

Moore's role in the team as captain entitled him to raise the trophy and thus be etched into footballing folklore. His performance in the final, while overshadowed by Geoff Hurst's hat-trick, encapsulated his enormous class as a ball-playing defender; it is less commonly remembered that Moore actually assisted the first and third of Hurst's goals.

That calmness under pressure and ability to deliver on the biggest stage, coupled with his immense quality both with and without the ball, make him one of the best ball-playing centre-backs ever to play the game.

3 Ronald Koeman 

Career Span: 1980-1997 

Ronald Koeman is one of the most unique players in football history, redefining the expectations of what it meant to be a central defender. To speak of the Dutchman's ability on the ball alone is to do him a disservice. This is a player who netted over 200 career goals (a scoring rate of roughly one goal every three games) despite spending the majority of his time in defence, in part due to his exceptional quality from set-pieces.

The pinnacle of his career came in 1988, when he helped PSV Eindhoven to a treble before leading the Netherlands to victory in the European Championships that summer—he is one of just five players to win an international trophy the summer after a treble-winning campaign at club level.

2 Franco Baresi 

Career Span: 1977-1997 

One-club man and AC Milan legend Franco Baresi stands at just 5'9" and yet, he not only forged a successful career as a central defender at the highest level, he became one of the best to ever play in the position.

Despite his small stature for a centre-back, Baresi was surprisingly effective in the air and did not lack pace or physical power. However, it was his elegance and outstanding technical skill that set him apart from his peers, often making forays forward into midfield with the ball and providing an extra passing option, possessing all the qualities of a deep-lying playmaker and a central defender.

In addition, he served as captain of an extremely successful AC Milan team for 15 years, showcasing his leadership qualities alongside his individual excellence as a player.

1 Franz Beckenbauer 

Career Span: 1964-1983 

The late, great Franz Beckenbauer was a footballer of rare quality. The German is one of just three defenders to have won the Ballon d'Or and the only defender to ever win it twice, joining an elite group of just 10 players in football history with more than one Ballon d'Or to their name.

It takes a special kind of defender to be honoured in that way alongside the great forwards and midfielders of the game and Beckenbauer certainly was, revolutionising the role of a central defender and pioneering a new interpretation of the position.

He possessed all the defensive qualities needed to have been a memorably elite centre-back but, in addition, he was arguably the first player at the highest level to meaningfully impact the attack and wider game in possession from the centre of defence, driving forward with the ball and playing one-twos with teammates—almost like having a playmaking box-to-box defender. Even in the modern age of ball-playing defenders, Beckenbauer stands alone at the top.