This was hasn’t been without criticism for Virgil van Dijk. All the headline news has been about the errors that he made against Arsenal. In reality, neither was Van Dijk to blame for Arsenal’s second nor third goal entirely. One was an unfortunate mishap. The other one was an even more unfortunate deflection.
All those mistakes have proven is that Van Dijk is a mortal being, after all. He isn’t infallible as he has made us believe due to his form this season. But it should no way in any shape or form taint what he has already achieved so far in this campaign.
After a year of turmoil last season, where many doubted whether he would be able to get back to his peak, this season Van Dijk has duly quashed those doubts. He has become a bastion at the heart of Liverpool’s defence once again. And the numbers reflect that as well. Especially, in one key metric where Van Dijk is the only player to achieve something this season.
Van Dijk better than anyone else in Europe
This season Virgil van Dijk is by far the best player when it comes to winning aerial duels. As revealed in the latest statistics released by WhoScored. According to the statistics website out of the players who have contested at least 100 defensive duels this season, Van Dijk is the only one to have won more than 80%.
There are no surprises here. Van Dijk is an exceptional defender, and he is particularly dominant when it comes to physical duels. It’s just yet more confirmation that the Liverpool captain is back to his best this season.
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