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People hate the fact Virgil van Dijk plays for Liverpool. It robs him of all the credit he deserves.
THREAD - Why VvD is up there alongside the greats, and at his peak, is undeniably the best individually/ attributes wise.
THREAD - Why VvD is up there alongside the greats, and at his peak, is undeniably the best individually/ attributes wise.
I guarantee, if you see a debate on twitter concerning VvD, the most liked reply is probably a blanket statement like “hahah, VVD? No!” When analysed and actually looked into, nobody can make a genuine argument to prove otherwise, the same as Alisson vs Oblak / Gerrard debates.
Comparing him amongst the greats - Everything considered, the other best PL cbs are Terry, Rio and Vidic. Typically, the best players excel in one of the categories of athleticism, pace, recovery challenges OR master of reading the game, being physical. Intelligence too.
There are a few crossovers where players are a good hybrid of both but usually a player has a few attributes in which they become the masters of their trade.
Virgil is a freak of a nature. He’s the one example who is unbelievably athletically gifted like Rio and as smart as Terry. His frame is bigger than any of theirs and I’ve never seen another defender like him. He’s the best physically AND technically.
Look at Terry’s weakness for example. He was slow. Virgil isn’t just a bit quicker. He’s rapid. He clocked the top speed in the 18/19 CL campaign out of any player. Look at Rio. Intelligent and fast, sure. But he wouldn’t dominate arieally and shrug off players as easily as VVD
Virgil is the most complete CB in PL history. He is a 10/10 in every possible attribute and a freak of nature. His peak is higher than any other PL cb in history. Not even Terry was ever at the level of competing with the greatest player in history for the Ballon d’Or.
Why even hear it from me? Kompany and Keown both have hailed him as the best PL cb too. Rio put him up there. The only valid argument against him is how long he’s been doing it for and his trophy haul, which ultimately don’t affect him as an individual.
Individually, he’s definitely the best, purely for his ability and talent. As a whole, taking everything into account, I think he solidifies the #1 spot after a few more major trophies and remaining at this level over the next 2-3 years, which I have every confidence he will do.
Let’s address the obvious one - longevity. Longevity is a great thing to have and it’s impressive. That said, it says far more about a player’s career as a whole than their individual ability.
It only fits the agenda when convenient too. Dani Alves wasn’t at that elite amazing level until age 24. Trent starts showing signs of it at age 19. It doesn’t matter when a player peaks. In the Virgil case, he didn’t suddenly become World Class the night he joined Liverpool.
Even in this case, Virgil is only 28, and has won a CL, Super cup, CWC and is about to win a PL. He is part of the best team in the World, he’s going to win far more too. As long as fitness and injuries allow, he’ll be the best CB in the world for another 3-5 years.
The worst argument to make is “VVD has only done it for a year” (A) - This is just delusional and wrong. (B) Let’s take 18/19, VvD’s best season.
- UEFA POTY
-PL POTY
- CL winner
- 2nd narrowly and controversially in the Ballon d’Or to the greatest player in football history
- UEFA POTY
-PL POTY
- CL winner
- 2nd narrowly and controversially in the Ballon d’Or to the greatest player in football history
Those achievements are outrageous and undeniably the best individual season any PL defender has ever had. How can he achieve something so outrageous, and not be allowed in the PL top tier CB conversation? It’s beyond biased and delusional.
On the “hes only done it for 1 or 2 years” / “he was at Celtic and Southampton until 26” -
At Celtic he was unbelievable, operating at a PL level, even scoring goals from free kicks or walking through entire teams. A CB. He got his PL move for being a quality PL level player.
At Celtic he was unbelievable, operating at a PL level, even scoring goals from free kicks or walking through entire teams. A CB. He got his PL move for being a quality PL level player.
At Southampton he was unfortunate to be injured for half a year, missing 18 games (/38)
Even then he was still regarded as an amazing defender, the only Cbs which were debatably above him despite playing for Southampton were Luiz under Conte, and Jan Vertonghen and Alderweireld.
Even then he was still regarded as an amazing defender, the only Cbs which were debatably above him despite playing for Southampton were Luiz under Conte, and Jan Vertonghen and Alderweireld.
The other defenders in the same tier don’t have everything the way Virgil does, they never had an individual peak like Virgil. None of them would have been in contention for last year’s Ballon d’Or. Collective trophies and playing for longer is all they have over him. For now.
