I'll back you up on that. He's the best I've seen in my lifetime. He's up there with Maldini and Nesta, and he's possibly more rounded than both while playing in an era where defenders receive less protection and have to defend on the front foot far more.
two gods of the position, maldini for versatility and longevity is arguably in a class of his own among the very best, but for a few seasons (among the decades of top quality ones), nesta was probably the most complete cb i've ever seen, reading of the game was uncanny, quick and graceful (ala hansen, not the quick part tho Al, sorry
) just made the position look like an art (the fact he looked like he just walked off a milan catwalk probably added to the illusion) while supremely effective.
and i agree, you look at VVD and you see those greats in him (not so much a beresi, tho he was much more than the animal many label him with), my only point was - he has to maintain it so at the end of his career he can rightly be put among them, these dudes did it season in season out maintaining a very high standard in the main (everyone has dips here and there), with VVD we wait and see (i dont doubt he will at this point, just nowadays as fans we are often very quick to bestow 'one of the/best of all time' greatness before due time)
anyway, that's my last word on it, yes he is fucking awesome, head and shoulders above his peers and what a warm fuzzy feeling you get knowing he is ours