Five Most Commanding Centre-Backs in the Premier League

Football teams, especially in the Premier League, need leaders at the back. Without a vocal, no-nonsense centre-back to hold things together, backlines can fall apart in a hurry.

Today, we’ll be looking at the five most commanding centre-halves in the Premier League, based on the number of clearances and blocks they have completed this season.

We’ll be looking at players from clubs such as Liverpool, Everton and Nottingham Forest in this list – all data has been taken from the official Premier League website.

Nikola Milenkovic

Nottingham Forest have had a rough season in 2025/26, after they qualified for the Europa League at the end of the previous campaign – without Nikola Milenkovic, who knows where they might be.

Milenkovic has made 139 clearances in the Premier League, alongside 24 blocks so far in the Premier League this season.

Standing at 6ft 5, Milenkovic is almost impossible to beat in an aerial duel – he is also very brave, willing to put his body on the line for the cause.

Nathan Collins

Brentford are enjoying a wonderful campaign under the stewardship of Keith Andrews. Nathan Collins has played a huge part in this – his monolithic presence at the back has been invaluable.

The Republic of Ireland international has completed 151 clearances and has made 32 blocks in the Premier League this season – only one player has made more blocks than he has.

Technically, Collins is certainly no wizard – but he gets by on sheer grit and determination. He’s the kind of player that strikers hate playing against, given his physicality.

Virgil van Dijk

Who expected to see Virgil van Dijk on this list? It has been a torrid campaign for the Dutch international, but the stats do not lie.

No player has made more clearances in the Premier League than Van Dijk this season. He has only made 12 blocks, but he lands a spot on this list for his number of clearances alone.

Van Dijk is one of the best defenders in the history of the division. This certainly hasn’t been his best season – but even then, he remains among the best defenders in the league.

James Tarkowski

James Tarkowski has been a cornerstone of Everton’s backline for over three years now. A real throwback of a defender, Tarkowski routinely gives everything he has for the Toffees.

He has made more blocks in the Premier League this season than any other player – in total, he has blocked 34 shots in 2025/26.

At 33 years of age, Tarkowski isn’t getting any younger – however, he is still performing at the peak of his abilities.

Marcos Senesi

After a pitiful start to the season which saw him torn apart by Liverpool’s Hugo Ekitike, Marcos Senesi rolled his socks up – now, he is one of the best defenders in the league.

He has completed 31 blocks in the Premier League this season for Bournemouth, alongside a mammoth total of 178 clearances.

Not only is Senesi a very capable defender, he is also very technically proficient – in many ways, the Argentinian international is the total package.