Neville puts his neck on the line over Premier League's greatest ever full-back

31 March 2023 , 06:26

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Neville puts his neck on the line over Premier League's greatest ever full-back

Manchester United legend Gary Neville has insisted that his former Old Trafford colleague Denis Irwin is the best full-back in Premier League history.

The ex-Red Devils ace and Sky Sports pundit made the claim on Twitter while engaging with a fan, who was the first of the two to wax lyrical over Irwin. The Irishman is adored by the United faithful, largely for his efforts that helped contribute to the club lifting the Premier League seven times during his 12-year stay in Manchester.

Irwin made just shy of 300 appearances for United in the Premier League alone and was often good for a goal. Considering the ex- Republic of Ireland international was a full-back, Irwin found the net an impressive number of times and was always handy on free-kicks and penalties.

Neville's very first tweet discussed the recent batch of nominees for the Premier League hall of fame, with the ex-England international named.

In response, one fan wrote back having their say on one notable omission on the shortlist as they claimed: "Denis Irwin is criminally underrated, best full back since the Premier League began Gary or are we seeing this through red tinted glasses? I don’t think we are though."

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Quick to respond, Neville wrote back: "Agree! Denis is the best full back in PL history! Fact"

HAVE YOUR SAY! Is Denis Irwin the best full-back in Premier League history? Comment below

Gary Neville has claimed Denis Irwin (right) is the best full-back in Premier League history

It is a claim that has divided opinion, given many football fans view the more modern Ashley Cole as the best full-back in Premier League history for his exploits both at Arsenal and then London rivals Chelsea.

This isn't the first time Neville was waxed lyrical over Irwin, with the former heaping praise on the latter in his book as the former United right-back explained what he learnt from the two-time FA Cup winner.

“When it came to my education, I couldn’t have been luckier than to have Denis Irwin to study," Neville wrote.

"Has there been a more versatile full-back in English football? He was able to switch from left to right-wing without skipping a beat, he could attack and defend with equal ability, take free-kicks and penalties – and he stayed modest and hard-working throughout.

"He must be the best left and right-back that United have ever seen. Denis Irwin was so good you could put him on either flank and he’d be brilliant in either position."

As Neville mentioned, Irwin's versatility and ability to operate on both defensive flanks is what sets him apart from so many other full-backs in the history of the Premier League.

Josh O'Brien