Who has been the best central defender in Serie A this season?
Readers voted in Inter shotstopper Samir Handanovic with 33% of the vote, beating out Gigi Donnarumma, (Milan, 29%), Pepe Reina (Napoli, 21%) and Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus, 17%).
Our right-back will be Elseid Hysaj, who won a stunning 42% of the popular vote to Alessandro Florenzi's 33%, Bruno Peres 17% and Sime Vrsaljko's 8%.
Our poll on the English twitter page still voted Hysaj in, though with a narrower margin. He garnered 32% of the vote to Vrsaljko's 25%, leaving Florenzi and Bruno Peres in the lurch with 22% and 21% respectively. We can only assume that the English page represents opinion world-wide, a fascinating contrast if it's accurate.
Let’s see who are the candidates for the best central-defender in Serie A thus far this season.
Francesco Acerbi (Sassuolo) His brilliant defensive partnership with Paolo Cannavaro is one of t he reasons why Sassuolo are battling it out for a Europa League placement. The Neroverdi have allowed only four goals more than Inter and the former Milan man has also netted two goals thus far.
Andrea Barzagli (Juventus) Allegri took 9 matches to switch Juve from 4-3-1-2 to 3-5-2. Thanks to the new system, Barzagli could came back into the starting XI and the Bianconeri side have rediscovered their defensive solidity.
Kalidou Koulibaly (Napoli) The 24-year-old had a terrible start to the season, but with Napoli’s new 4-3-3 system he has settled himself as one of the finest central defenders of the league, showing impressive acceleration and physical strength.
Gonzalo Rodriguez (Fiorentina) The Viola’s captain is not only able to defend resolutely but he has already plundered two goals in the league.
Kostas Manolas (Roma) Probably the only reliable central defender at Roma. The Greece International is among the top sprinters in Serie A.
Joao Miranda (Inter) He is the cornerstone of Inter’s defensive-line, the less beaten of the league as well as one of the leaders of Nerazzurri’s changing room.
Jason Murillo (Inter) The defensive partnership with Miranda is probably the strongest of the league. It is really difficult to dribble past him and he’s probably the best man-to-man defender of Serie A.
Alessio Romagnoli (Milan) He’s struggled a bit at the beginning of the campaign but his performances have been improving a lot recently. His understanding with fellow central-defender Alex is also boosting Milan’s defensive solidity.
