Speaking on The Big Interview with Graham Hunter, Jaap Stam has been full of praise for Virgil van Dijk.
If there’s one thing the Netherlands know how to produce, it’s a top-class centre-half.
From Ronald Koeman, to Frank Rijkaard, to Frank De Boer all the way to Jaap Stam and van Dijk himself, the Dutch have often had the world’s best centre-backs at their disposal.
Inevitably, being the great Dutch defender of his generation, Stam was asked about van Dijk, and he had nothing but good things to say about the centre-half.
What’s been said?
Stam had praise for van Dijk.
“He’s got a great personality, he’s tall, even taller than I am. He’s great with his communication and he’s learnt that over the years, tactically reading the game, he’s become better, taking up his position defensively, he does that well, he has ability on the ball and he has decent pace for a big man. I would say now that he’s one of the best defenders in the world,” Stam said.
Best of the bunch
The Dutch may have a knack for producing truly world-class centre-backs, but van Dijk now has a real claim for being the best of the bunch.
The centre-half is one of the most dominant footballers of his generation, and he’s on-track to complete a truly unprecedented treble with Liverpool this season.
Yes, the likes of Koeman, Rijkaard and Stam achieved great things in their career, but if van Dijk can complete a clean sweep with the Reds this season, he will surely be considered the best Dutch defender in history.
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