The best midfield partnership in EPL history? Richards & Shearer pick top 10s

Alan Shearer and Micah Richards have had their say on the best ever Premier League central midfield partnerships is on the latest installment of the Match of the Day Top 10 podcast.

The show's format sees both Richards and Shearer offer their top 10 of football players or teams on a range of topics, with this week's edition perhaps the most similar lists between them.

The English top flight has been graced by some of the finest midfield talents in the history of the game, from domestic stars Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard, to the likes of Cesc Fabregas and Luka Modric.

As such, there were a wide range of elite duos to sift through, although surprisingly, there was complete unanimity between the top fives of both Richards and Shearer.

It likely comes as little shock that the duo that ultimately came out on top are considered to be one of the most successful pairings in the middle of the park, in terms of titles own in England.

Both Shearer and Richards ranked Manchester United's iconic duo Paul Scholes and Roy Keane as the best ever partnership - which perhaps comes as little surprise given their role in the most successful side in league history.

'Well, 12 seasons together, six Premier League titles and three FA Cups together - what more do you need?' claimed Richards.

And Shearer concurred, adding: 'It's the perfect partnership!'

There has long been a debate over who the best ever midfielder in the Premier League is, with Gerrard, Lampard and Scholes the three most common tips.

Yet Richards believes that Man City star Kevin de Bruyne has more than what it takes to snatch that title from under the former Liverpool captain's nose.

De Bruyne has played 243 times in the league, scoring 64 goals and assisted a stunning 105 more - just 57 behind all-time leader Ryan Giggs in almost 400 games fewer.

'If he has a couple more seasons in the Premier League, he will become the best ever, just ousting Steven Gerrard,' claimed Richards.

Again, Shearer could only agree with his colleague, stating: 'As much as I want to disagree, I can't. He can play out wide, he can play anywhere in that midfield.

'He's the one player I look back and think "I wouldn't mind playing in the same team as you" the chances and the balls he puts in. He's a forward's dream.'

N'Golo Kante and Danny Drinkwayer - who starred in that season of seasons that saw Leicester defy all the odds to win the title in 2015-16 - were named as No 10 by both, but Foxes fanatic Gary Lineker was still full of praise for the French star.

'I think Kante wins it on his own because he is a midfield pairing. Everybody always says he's two players, so it should have just been "Kante and Kante" and then he would probably win it.

'When he came to Leicester, it was his first season in the team. Robert Huth was asked: "How do you win a Premier League title with a back four of Danny Simpson, Wes Morgan, Robert Huth and Christian Fuchs?" and he just replied: "N'Golo Kante!"'