People here saying VVD is only overrated because of Liverpool fans haven't been paying much attention. Everyone and their mother is hyping him up, it's not a "Liverpool thing". Kompany recently called him the "best ever" PL defender.
I can fully understand the hype. He got a justified 2nd place Ballon d'Or placement, no other PL defender has ever been near winning it like him. He's a complete package like no one else (strong, fast, good technique, great long passing, reads the game well, a leader, etc etc). He transformed both Matip and Gomez to top top defenders (when they play with him only). He doesn't have the longevity or the team achievments to justify being the "greatest", but from a simple eye test it's easy to understand why people call him the best. I look at Terry, Ferdinand and Vidic, and I can't really single out one of them as more complete than VVD. After VVD joined Liverpool, we got the third most points in PL history, won a CL, and is about to win PL for the first time in ages. He plays a big part in that.
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Carrick gets my shout as well for most overrated (at times). I remember people seriously saying he was as good as Xabi Alonso. A good and reliable player, but not world class like many seemed to rate him as.