Ranking the 10 best defenders in the world: Top 10 centre-backs this season 

#5 Aymeric Laporte (Manchester City)

Manchester City's Aymeric Laporte

Manchester City matched Aymeric Laporte's €67 million release clause to lure him away from Atletic Bilbao during last season's winter transfer window which shows the confidence they had in his ability.

The 24-year old is one of the best ball-playing centre-backs in Europe. The Frenchmen completes 92.4% of his attempted passes and ranks 4th in terms of completed passes in the Premier League. The centre-back has been an integral part of Pep Guardiola's quadruple-chasing side and has featured 39 times this season across all competitions for Manchester City.

He is not the most physically astute defender out there but still manages to win 2.3 aerial duels per game. He also manages 1.1 tackles and 1.3 interceptions per game. Laporte is quick on the grass which makes him capable of covering the flanks during counter-attacks when the full-backs are out of position. His ball distribution from the back is just remarkable and makes him unique from other defenders out there.