Former Chelsea and Arsenal defender David Luiz has hit back at Jamie Carragher for his lack of a Premier League winners’ medal, amid scathing criticism from the former Liverpool centre-back.
The 43-year-old, alongside a number of pundits, were regularly critical of the Brazilian’s performances across his two spells in the Premier League, having been somewhat erratic - particularly with the Gunners.
Luiz did have moments of brilliance, though, and did play a key role in Chelsea’s 2016/17 Premier League title triumph under Antonio Conte after being brought back from Paris Saint-Germain.
The 34-year-old, who departed Arsenal at the end of last season, pointed to his winners’ medal amid the scathing criticism from Carragher and co.
Talking to MailSport, he said: "It is funny, some people talk about how to win the Premier League, but they have never won it. Jamie Carragher never won the Premier League.
"They talk and say, 'This player is not right for this league'. Yet I won the league. These people have forgotten the past.
"You cannot say, 'David is a player who never won, you won’t win anything with David'. That is not true! You have to base your opinion on something real, not something fake.
"I use the word perception. That is all it is. I am not going to fight to change the perception of these people, who decide to have this view of me because they want to.
"They have not analysed me properly. I am not going to waste my time on that."
Whilst some of the criticism sent Luiz’s way was sometimes just, the Champions League winner has suggested that his somewhat maverick style of play has played a huge influence on the most promising defenders in the English top-flight.
"I arrived in England, at 23, and I was a defender who played from the back — no one did that, I was different. Some did not like it," he said.
"Now, 11 years later, everyone does it… 'Ah, isn’t he a great defender, he can play from the back!'”
Luiz is currently without a club, having racked up 213 Premier League appearances for both Chelsea and Arsenal.
