Gary O’Neil feels Virgil van Dijk doesn’t get enough credit.
Former West Ham midfielder Gary O’Neil feels Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk does not get the credit his performances deserve.
On TalkSport, O’Neil said van Dijk is one of the best defenders he’s ever seen – although he couldn’t remember if he played against him, when naming him in his Premier League team of the season so far.
O’Neil, 36, said: “Van Dijk, for very similar reasons to Alisson. He came into Liverpool and he’s everything you wanted him to be. Everyone thought he might be the difference and he has. I don’t think that can be overlooked.
“He makes it look so easy sometimes, that sometimes he doesn’t get the credit he deserves. He’s one of the best defenders all-round that I’ve ever seen. I might have played against him with Southampton – I don’t think… He’s been fantastic. Him and Alisson have transformed Liverpool.”
Van Dijk is widely regarded as the world’s central defender and the reigning PFA Player of the Year so the idea he isn’t getting the credit he deserves is wide of the mark.
He is head and shoulders above any defender in the Premier League and the title race would have been very difference if it were him and not Aymeric Laporte who was sidelined for an extended period of time.
The Dutchman makes such a difference to the players around him; it’s hard to recall a defender utterly transforming a backline as obviously as he has.
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