With 45 PFA Team of the Year nods and 49 titles between them, we can safely say we’re at the business end of our ‘best Premier League players of all time’ series now.
The players ranked from 20-11 in our top 50 are true icons of the English game, all of whom left an indelible mark on the division during their playing careers (not so much during their managerial careers *cough* *cough* Steven Gerrard *cough* *cough*).
So without further ado, here’s the players who just missed out on our top ten, and missed out on being a part of a spirited debate on 90min’s YouTube channel ranking the said top ten:
Premier League club: Manchester United
Position: Wide midfielder
The poster boy of the Premier League throughout the 1990s, David Beckham was a pretty face and a bloody brilliant footballer.
After breaking into the Manchester United team at 19 years old, Beckham became a household name with his outrageous halfway line goal against Wimbledon, and was soon an icon after donning the number seven jersey and scoring free-kicks seemingly at will with his wand of a right foot.
Despite his Premier League career would come to an abrupt end at the age of 28 thanks to a falling out with Sir Alex Ferguson and a move to Real Madrid, Beckham still managed to rack up six league titles, three Premier League Playmaker awards, a PFA Player of the Year award and four inclusions in PFA Teams of the Year.
Premier League club: Manchester City
Position: Attacking midfielder
“He’s an incredible legend. He’s a huge competitor. In small spaces, in the pockets, I never saw a player like him.” That’s lofty praised coming from Pep Guaridola, the man who previously managed literally the greatest footballer of the time Lionel Messi – and it’s more than justified.
David Silva was genuinely that good at Manchester City. Signed by the club as one of their first marquee players, Silva more than lived up the billing with consistently fantastic performances during his ten seasons at the Etihad Stadium.
Premier League club: Manchester City
Position: Striker
AGUERROOOOOOOOOOOO!!
Sorry, we had to.
Sergio Aguero provided football fans with the defining moment of the Premier League era with that title-winning goal against QPR in 2012, and had that been the only goal he ever scored in his life he probably would’ve made this list.
As it turned out, it wasn’t the only goal he ever scored. Aguero scored 183 others for Manchester City in the Premier League. In fact, out of anyone who has scored 100+ goals in the Premier League, Aguero has the best minutes per goal record. Impressive stuff.
Premier League club: Arsenal
Position: Midfielder
You know the player everyone thought Paul Pogba could be during his time at Manchester United? Well that was exactly who Patrick Vieira was.
The France star was quite simply a perfect midfielder. As good on the ball as he was off of it, throughout his time at Arsenal, Vieira was consistently one of the best and most consistent performers in the Premier League.
His six PFA Team of the Year nods – the joint second most ever – are proof of that, as are three league titles he won too.
Premier League club: Tottenham Hotspur
Position: Striker
We’re guessing that Alan Shearer breathed possibly the biggest sigh of relief of all time when Harry Kane’s move to Bayern Munich was confirmed, because, oh boy, was Kane getting close to breaking his Premier League goalscoring record.
Tottenham’s greatest ever goalscorer left England’s top flight with a quite incredible 213 league goals to his name – 47 behind Shearer – and three Premier League Golden Boots under his belt.
And sure, he didn’t even up breaking Shearer’s record as he was expected to do, nor did he win a league title with a talented Spurs outfit, but you’d be a fool to think he’s not returning to the division after his spell in Bavaria to do both before he hangs up his boots.
Premier League club: Liverpool
Position: Midfielder
For some of you (mainly Man Utd fans), this ranking is egregiously high. For others (Liverpool fans), this ranking is egregiously low.
Steven Gerrard’s naysayers point to “The Slip” and his consistent failure to get over the line and win a Premier League title. Steven Gerrard’s supporters point to a record eight PFA Team of the Year nods.
Ultimately, if you were a sentient being who was watching the Premier League in the 2000s, you’ll be well aware of just how brilliant Stevie G was. The Liverpool captain was the closest to Roy the Rovers (a reference for anyone who was a sentient being in the ’70s) we’ll probably ever see in the division.
Premier League club: Manchester United
Position: Wide midfielder
There are plenty of reasons why Ryan Giggs is widely regarded as one of the best footballers in Premier League history, perhaps the one that stands out the most to us is this…
Manchester United hadn’t won a league title for over 20 years prior to Giggs breaking into the first team, they then proceeded to win 13 during his playing career, and since he’s retired they haven’t won another.
Simply put, Giggs was a winner.
Premier League club: Chelsea
Position: Winger
Here’s a peak behind the curtain at 90min HQ for you: Eden Hazard’s retirement was the reason we decided to do rank the 50 greatest players in Premier League history.
While the tricky winger’s move to Real Madrid will go down as one of the worst of all time, that doesn’t detract from the fact that, at Chelsea, Hazard was an utter joy to watch.
The Belgian was the perfect modern wide player during his time at Stamford Bridge, combining goal threat (he netted double figures in five of his seven league campaigns) with an ability to set up his teammates (assisting 54 goals during his Premier League career), and a flair for the utter sublime (the solo goal he bagged against Arsenal).
Premier League club: Manchester United
Position: Midfielder
Hailed as the “best central midfielder of the last 20 years” by Xavi Hernandez and “the best I’ve played with” by Cristiano Ronaldo, it’s fair to say that Paul Scholes was quite the footballer in his day.
A member of the famed Class of ’92, Scholes played a key role in a golden era for Manchester United throughout the 1990s and the 2000s. His metronomic presence in the middle of the park was the catalyst for the Red Devils dominating opposition week in, week out for the best part of two decades.
Premier League clubs: Chelsea and Aston Villa
Position: Defender
Spoiler alert: John Terry is the highest ranked defender in our top 50.
And for very good reason.
The former England and Chelsea captain was the perfect central defender. Brave in the tackle, good on the ball, and able to marshal a backline at will, it’s very easy to see why Terry made the PFA Team of the Years four times and was named UEFA Club Defender of the Year on three occasions.
Without his influence at the back, it’s hard to imagine Chelsea having won as many titles as they have during the 21st century.
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