Kyle Walker rolled back the years for Burnley against Leeds United and Jamie Carragher believes he is the best right-back in Premier League history – not Gary Neville.
Jamie Carragher has declared Kyle Walker as the best right-back in Premier League history – not Gary Neville. The Liverpool legend reckons the former Manchester City player’s longevity gives him the edge over his old adversary, delivering his verdict with a deliberate dig.
Walker’s impressive display during Burnley‘s 2-0 triumph vs Leeds United sparked the comparison from Carragher. He provided the crucial assist for former Chelsea midfielder Lesley Ugochukwu’s opener at Turf Moor, delivering a pinpoint cross from the right flank.
Carragher also praised how Walker had intercepted a pass before spearheading a counter-attack that led to their second goal of the game. That performance was enough to settle the argument for Carragher, who then delivered his verdict with some characteristic wit.
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“There’s a big debate,” he said. “Kyle Walker or Gary Neville. Who is the best right-back in the Premier League?”
“At 35, he’s still bursting forward. At 35, Gary Neville was getting run ragged by Jerome Thomas at West Brom so that, for me, it gives Kyle Walker the final [say].”
Carragher, who could not help but chuckle whilst making that observation – on MNF – was referencing the final match of Neville’s playing career on New Year’s Day in 2011. Manchester United secured a 2-1 victory at The Hawthorns, but the right-back called time on his career just a month later, midway through the 2010/11 campaign.
In a candid interview with FourFourTwo, Neville admitted that Thomas had “destroyed” him. “I was struggling mentally at that time,” he confessed.
“It’s never one single moment, but that was the tipping point. I came in at half-time and felt my team-mates were looking at me and also having to defend me to the manager.
“I was uncomfortable about the fans singing my name, and uncomfortable about being out on the pitch knowing that I had just been destroyed by not the best player in the world [Thomas]. I didn’t want to be there and I’d never felt that on a football pitch before, but I’d been like that in training for the last three or four months.
“People ask me if I miss football and I say no, because I remember how bad those last six months were. I went to the end.”
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Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £192 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.
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