Premier League legends Rio Ferdinand and Martin Keown debated whether England star Jude Bellingham is already ‘world-class’.
Ferdinand is facing ongoing backlash from Arsenal fans over his recent comments on Gunners winger Bukayo Saka.
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Bellingham and Saka are undoubtedly two of the finest young players in world footballCredit: Getty
The Manchester United icon does not believe Saka is ‘world-class’, sparking a wider debate about how to define the term.
To explain himself ahead of Arsenal’s 1-0 defeat to Porto on Wednesday night, Ferdinand insisted there are only 12 active players who fit his definition of ‘world-class’.
They are: Ederson, Kyle Walker, Rodri, Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Jr, Harry Kane, Alisson, Virgil van Dijk, Kevin De Bruyne, Mohamed Salah, Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland.
But reacting to the list, ex-Arsenal defender Keown asked why Real Madrid superstar Bellingham deserves a spot over Saka.
Keown said: “I think Bellingham is one I question. He’s in amazing form, what he’s doing at Real Madrid right now, but we look at Saka.
“Saka’s been the England Player of the Year. Bellingham hasn’t got a look in. Maybe Rio is being a bit mischievous with Arsenal fans.”
Ferdinand then admitted Bellingham ought to be in a separate bracket below the other 11.
He said: “They’ve actually got that list a little bit wrong. Bellingham was on the list just below that on his own. He’s edging into there.
Ferdinand’s 12 world-class players
Ederson (Man City)
Kyle Walker (Man City)
Rodri (Man city)
Vinicius Jr (Real Madrid)
Harry Kane (Bayern Munich)
Alisson (Liverpool)
Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Kevin De Bruyne (Man City)
Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint-Germain)
Erling Haaland (Man City)
Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid)
“The thing that maybe stops him being on that list, for me, right now, is time. He will be there. He’s in world-class form. He just needs that time.
“Saka’s got that world-class potential, but he hasn’t been exposed to the knockout stages of the Champions League and the longevity. That’s the difference.
Arsenal fan Laura Woods grills Rio Ferdinand for his assessment of Gunners’ Bukayo Saka and Manchester City’s ‘world class’ Phil Foden
“All the other players on that list, you can see they’ve played in prestigious games and they’re producing those moments.
“They’ve done ridiculous things over a long period of time.”
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