The Premier League has announced a 15-man shortlist for the 2023 Hall of Fame nominees, with John Terry, Rio Ferdinand and Michael Owen among the legends in the running for a third time.
16 English top-flight icons have been inducted into the Premier League’s Hall of Fame so far, with the likes of Thierry Henry, Alan Shearer and David Beckham making the cut after the award began in 2021.
And earlier this week, former Manchester United coach Sir Alex Ferguson and former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, who won 16 league titles, became the first managers to enter the esteemed club.
Today the Premier League revealed its nominees for 2023, which features two newcomers, Michael Carrick and Jermain Defoe.
Carrick enjoyed great success in his 12-year stint with United, winning five titles while making over 300 appearances, having previously played for London sides West Ham and Tottenham Hotspur.
The former midfielder, who is now managing Championship side Middlesbrough, also won many other trophies, including the Champions League.
Defoe never got his hands on a league winner’s medal. Still, the ex-England striker has an excellent goalscoring record in the league, having scored 162 times across 496 appearances for West Ham, Tottenham, Portsmouth, Sunderland and Bournemouth. He is ninth in the all-time goalscoring charts in the Premier League.
Apart from Carrick and Defoe, several ex-players were nominated for a third time this year, having missed out on a place in the Hall of Fame on two previous occasions, with Sol Campbell, Tony Adams, John Terry, Andy Cole, Ashley Cole, Rio Ferdinand, Les Ferdinand, Robbie Fowler, Michael Owen, and Nemanja Vidic all hoping for third time lucky in 2023.
Former Chelsea keeper Petr Cech, ex-Man United coach Gary Neville and former Man City powerhouse Yaya Toure are also in the running again, having made it onto the shortlist for the first time in 2022.
Each inductee receives a personalised medallion and a £10,000 donation made by the Premier League to a charity of their choice.