Happy birthday to the finest defender of my generation (Video)

Exceptional defenders are a rare breed. I’m talking about the ones that don’t put a foot wrong throughout a 90 minute encounter. The ones that remain unfazed, regardless of the opposition. The ones that read the game so well, they are unlikely to be caught out when up against an oncoming attack.

I’ve been lucky enough to bear witness to some of the games finest centre-backs – John Terry and Rio Ferdinand in their respective prime, Jaap Stam during his Manchester United days, Sol Campbell at his brilliant best, and that’s just those that have played in the Premiership.

However, they pale in comparison when it comes to one man, with a great tackle winning him this accolade – Ledley King. The recently retired former Tottenham Hotspur centre-back was the definition of class in the heart of the Spurs defence.

He exuded confidence, which clearly rubbed off on teammates. Knee injuries hampered his performances during the latter stages of his career, but it’s these injuries that saw fans welcome him into their hearts that much more.

King was regularly praised by his peers for his inability to train, before turning in a performance of the highest order at the weekend. The defender was described as a ‘freak’ by Martin Jol, in the nicest way possible, while Harry Redknapp labelled him a ‘Rolls Royce’ player.

It’s a massive shame that his knee injuries restricted him to just 315 appearances for Spurs during his 14 years of service, while earning just 21 caps for England. However, while the term legend is batted around far too easily in modern football, King is fully deserving of the title.

The defender still holds the record for the quickest goal in Premier League history, while that tackle on Arjen Robben in 2006, despite Claude Makelele scoring just one of his two goals for Chelsea from the resulting corner, will forever live in the memories of Spurs fans.

Happy 32^nd Birthday Ledley King

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