CHELSEA legend Joe Cole has heralded his former skipper John Terry as the Premier League’s best ever captain…but SunSport readers disagree.
Former Blue Cole starred alongside Stamford Bridge hero Terry for seven years between 2003 and 2010 and has lauded his old team-mate’s leadership credentials.
Speaking to BT Sport, where he now works as a pundit, Cole said: “John Terry was the best captain. His attention to detail on and off the pitch, he led from the front and demanded standards.
“He was just a perfect captain to have at a club.
“I would say he is the best Premier League captain ever, I think there’s an argument for a few others, but JT is certainly up there.”
The Premier League has been blessed with plenty of inspirational leaders since it began in 1992.
Manchester United‘s Roy Keane, Arsenal‘s Patrick Vieira and Manchester City‘s Vincent Kompany can all stake claim and rival JT for the title of the greatest ever to don the armband.
Chelsea stalwart Terry captained the West London side for the majority of his 19 years at the club before he ended his glittering career at Aston Villa where he is now assistant manager.
Terry won every single major trophy at Chelsea including back-to-back Premier League titles under boss Jose Mourinho in 2004-05 and 2005-06.
United icon and Irishman Keane captained the Red Devils to the league title, FA Cup and Champions League in 1999 to secure a historic treble.
It was this feat and his role in United’s dominance from the early 1990s to mid-2000s that saw SunSport readers choose the former no-nonsense midfielder over Terry as the Premier League’s greatest all-time captain.
It was a resounding win for hard man Keane who received 36% of the 2,605 votes cast, nearly double the 19% who plumped for Terry.
Kompany came third with 15% courtesy of his haul of ten major domestic trophies – including four league titles – during his spell at the Eithad.
Liverpool hero Steven Gerrard, Vieira and former Gunners centre-back Tony Adams all polled 9 per cent of votes.
Despite never getting his hands on the Premier League trophy, Gerrard’s influence as Anfield skipper and Liverpool heartbeat saw him topple Leicester‘s historic title-winning leader Wes Morgan in our poll.
Although SunSport readers comfortably voted Keane over Terry the stats tell a much closer tale between the two successful leaders.
Straight-talking Keane pips Terry on win percentage with the Irishman having won 64% of his Premier League games for United to Terry’s 63% for Chelsea.
Terry won a phenomenal 14 major trophies during his time at Stamford Bridge but Keane tops him with 17 major winners medals to show from his Old Trafford career.
