Former England international Sean Ashton reveals John Terry was not the best defender he ever played against while also also mentioning Rio Ferdinand the more fearsome opponent.
Terry completed his move to Aston Villa on Monday morning, choosing to drop down to the Championship to join with Steve Bruce’s side following his exit from Chelsea.
He his regarded as one of the Blues’ and England’s greatest ever footballers, and the 32-year-Old left the Stamford Bridge as Chelsea most successful captain ever following his 22-year relationship with the west London club.
A world class player while at his peak, he bagged the UEFA Club Defender of the Year three times, named PFA Player of Year once, and got included in the FIFPro World XI for five consecutive seasons. Very impressive record.
However, despite all these achievements, Ashton as quoted via talkSPORT admit Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand was actually the tougher opponent – calling him the best defender he ever played against.
According to Jim White of talkSPORT, Ashton said: “If I had to play one v one against any defender, I would probably prefer to play against John Terry, because he likes the battle, and so did I, and I felt like I was probably stronger than him.
“Whereas, Rio Ferdinand is the best defender I have ever played against.
“[He was] so clever, so intelligent. Every time I wanted to back into him he wasn’t there, he’d just step in front of me and steal the ball like a Rolls Royce then fizz it out to the full-back.
“He didn’t get too involved in aerial challenges when he didn’t need to. [He was] just a very, very clever defender.”