Premier League legend heaps ultimate praise on Paul McGrath ahead of new documentary
McGrath, 64, is the subject of a Sky Sports documentary this evening that will see the Dubliner reflect on his storied life on and off the pitch
Les Ferdinand says Ireland legend Paul McGrath had "absolutely everything" as a defender.
McGrath, 64, is the subject of a Sky Sports documentary this evening that will see the Dubliner reflect on his storied life on and off the pitch.
As well as battling alcoholism, the centre-back struggled with persistent knee injuries throughout his career and often didn't train in order to play matches.
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One of his regular opponents during his career was England forward Ferdinand, who describes McGrath in glowing terms.
"Everyone always used to talk about the bad knee he had," Ferdinand said of McGrath on Sky Sports. "It was almost like Ledley King, who I worked with at Tottenham, who couldn't train during the week but would play in the games and be the best player.
"That was Paul McGrath every time you came up against him. I always used to look ahead of my games at the centre-half and think, he's good in the air, so I'm going to run in behind.
"But you look at Paul McGrath, and he can run in behind and he's good in the air, and he's strong. He had absolutely everything.
"He was a PFA winner and you look at the history of the PFA over 51 years and only six defenders have ever won it.
"It just goes to show what a player he was."
McGrath moved from St Patrick's Athletic to Manchester United where he would go on to play under Sir Alex Ferguson.
His life off the pitch put a strain on his relationship with Ferguson who eventually sold the Ireland defender to Aston Villa.
But it was at Villa where McGrath would play the best football of his career, culminating in him winning the 1993 PFA Players' Player of the Year award.
Ferdinand, who score over 200 goals during his illustrious career, joked: "I thought I was doing things right in my career because I trained every day, but maybe I should have trained once a week like he did. I might have scored more goals.
"What he has done and where he has been in his career is absolutely phenomenal.
"It was amazing that he was able to have the career he did given the addictions he did have."
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