Where are the world class defenders?

Where are today's equivalents?

Its certainly a key topic of discussion, where are the true world class defenders in football today?. Today there is a noticeable lack of world class defenders, certainly when you consider the depth of terrific defenders from ten-twenty years ago.

For me defending nowadays just isn't up to scratch. The central defenders are lacking in true quality and depth. This is all the more strange when compared to modern day goalkeeping which is arguably as strong as it has ever been. The emphasis is certainly on encouraging attacking play with the depth of flair attacking players seemingly at its peak.

Defending had its peak in the 90s and 00s with the likes of Paolo Maldini in his prime, Alessandro Nesta, Jaap Stam, Fernando Hierro, Fabio Cannavaro and John Terry. You could probably add a lot more to that list but those were generally seen in their primes as truly world class. Today we have, that many consider world class, Chielini, Bonucci, Thiago Silva, Diego Godín and Sergio Ramos. Just on that list alone I think only Chielini and Godín would be close to the former list of 90s and 00s defenders in quality.

For me the best defence in Europe in the past few years has been Atlético Madrid. Built on the Juanfran-Miranda-Godín-Filipe Luis back line they won the La liga title conceding twenty-six. However with a Juanfran-Giménez-Godín-Filipe Luis back line two seasons later they conceded just eighteen goals. Atlético under Simeone are seen as a throwback to a bygone era. Their style of football does divide opinion in an era of attacking football but Atlético are an example of how a good collective defence can yield good results.

Another example that defending can yield fantastic results is Leicester from last season. Although not as mean as Atlético, Leicester's counter attacks last season began from  the Huth-Morgan defence being able to stifle opposition. In Kanté they had a terrific engine to help out the centre backs.

However despite all this defending as a whole is at an extreme low. New rules this season in the Premier League saw a clamp down on the typical penalty area jostling from set-pieces which has cost Leicester this season it could be argued.

Many will point to the clamp down on the tackle from behind in the 90s as the turning point that the emphasis was swinging to more attacking play. While this is to a degree true I think the major reason for the lack of top class defenders is the over emphasis on 'playing out from the back'. We see this many times as the tiki-taka obsession became the norm. Teams today prefer to have defenders in the mould of a John Stones/David Luiz who are comfortable on the ball as opposed to a Maldini/Stam type of defender where breaking up play was first and foremost.

In many ways central defenders are being asked to offer more than just defend. In a similar way that the modern full-back is expected to provide width in attacks, almost to the detriment of his defensive play.

The lack of top defenders can also be seen in the transfer market. The fees for the likes of Stones, Otamendi and Bailly reflect this. Barcelona's best defender outside of Piqué is Javier Masherano, a player who was converted from holding midfield because of the lack of proper defenders available. Sergio Ramos is hailed as a 'world class' defender because he scores vital goals but his disciplinary record is shocking and like Masherano was converted, in his case from right back when the defender decline began circa 2007-2009.

For me another glaring sign that world class defenders are depleted in numbers is seen in Argentina. The Argentine defence is a disaster. There is no Roberto Ayala type, not even a Daniel Passarella. Argentina just isn't producing defenders. England have no Tony Adams/John Terry types emerging, Italy is still dependent on the Chielini-Bonucci-Barazagli defence but they are getting older with no real lead to emerging similar quality. I enjoy attacking football but for me there needs to be a balance. It's cyclical so hopefully defenders, proper ones, emerge in the coming years but it's looking slightly bleak just now.