OPINION
Since the arrival of Virgil Van Dijk at Anfield, Liverpool have become one of Europe’s elite footballing sides once again.
The Dutch central defender has become a colossus in the heart of the Reds’ defence and has given them a new dimension, rather than being a side only known for their prolific front-three.
After winning the Champions League and the PFA Premier League Player of the Year award last season, the 28-year-old has been tipped to be the first defender to win the Ballon d’Or since Fabio Cannavaro in 2006 after the Italian won the World Cup.
Despite admitting he would be honoured to win the accolade in an interview with BBC Sport, Van Dijk still went on to select an area that he needs to improve on to become even better.
“If I am rewarded for the season I had last year that would be unbelievable and I would be so proud,” Van Dijk said. “But I feel there is still more to come. I can get more out of me.”
“On a critical part, I could have done more on attacking set-pieces, been more dangerous. It is not easy, I try to work on it.”
The Holland international scored four goals in the Premier League last season, joint second-best in the division, with only Brighton defender Shane Duffy scoring more (5). [Premier League]
Van Dijk is being overly critical of his own game in this interview, but if he added more goals to his game soon, there is no chance that it wouldn’t be the Dutchman who took home the Ballon d’Or.
The experienced enforcer is clearly Liverpool’s best defender, averaging the most clearances by far with 5.2 and an impressive WhoScored rating of 7.44.
Now that Van Dijk has added a Champions League medal to his cabinet, there is only the defender himself that can halt his progress – the 28-year-old must put that to the back of his head, and concentrate on winning more with the Reds.
