Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk is receiving praise.
After starring on Monday Night Football against Crystal Palace, hype over Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk has gone into overdrive.
Jamie Carragher and Gary Neville told SkySports that Van Dijk can become the best centre-back in the world, and deserves to be discussed alongside Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane.
The hype over the Dutchman is justified – but it should also be noted that he is not even the best in the Premier League.
That title belongs to Tottenham Hotspur centre-back Jan Vertonghen, who is routinely and unjustifiably overlooked for the same type of discussions.
Vertonghen has been proving his quality in the Premier League since joining Tottenham in 2012, racking up more than 200 appearances for the club.
Over this time he has helped transform Tottenham into having one of the league’s meanest defences, now aided by teammates Toby Alderweireld and Davinson Sanchez.
Vertonghen proved his quality on the big stage this summer when he helped Belgium to the semi-finals of the World Cup.
Van Dijk deserves his plaudits, but he also needs to sustain his success and form at Liverpool like Vertonghen has at Tottenham.
To discard the Belgian from conversations about being the best in the league or even the world is disrespectful to what he has achieved.
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