Paul Scholes has snubbed Roy Keane and Patrick Vieira by insisting Manchester City star Rodri is the best Premier League defensive midfielder of all time.
Spanish sensation Rodri won the Ballon d’Or ahead of Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior at a glitzy ceremony in Paris earlier this week. This came following a stunning 12 months, which saw him win a fourth straight title with City and the European Championships for Spain.
Scholes’s former team-mate Keane and Arsenal legend Vieira are regarded as two of the greatest players of their generation. But in a move that will likely anger United and Arsenal fans, Scholes reckons Rodri is better than both of them.
Scholes told Sky Bet’s ‘The Overlap Fan Debate’: “Rodri fully deserves it for all he’s done. He’s lost one game in the calendar year.
“Rodri is a better footballer than Vinicius Junior. Vinicius Junior will probably win you more games, he’ll be more skillful, but Rodri is a beautiful footballer.
(Image: Manchester United via Getty Images)
“That position, especially where he plays, in that Spanish position where [Pep] Guardiola used to play and all these great players in there like [Sergio] Busquets, they make your team play brilliant football.”
Asked whether Rodri was the best player in Premier League history to have played in that position, Scholes replied: “Yes, but Roy [Keane] did everything as a midfield player. He [Rodri] is a playmaker as well. He starts the play.
“There was time when Vinicius [Junior] wasn’t [effective], but there was never a time when Rodri wasn’t effective for his team.”