Virgil van Dijk has been a stalwart in Liverpool’s defence ever since he joined from Southampton in January 2018.
Most rival fans thought that the £70million Liverpool spent on bringing him to Anfield was way too much money, but soon after his transfer, he proved why he was worth that much.
Indeed, he may be 33 years old now, but there’s no hiding from the fact that Van Dijk is still the best centre-back in the Premier League.
Of course, others such as Ruben Dias and Marc Guehi may start giving him a run for his money in the future, but at the moment, there isn’t a better centre-back than him in the world.
Virgil van Dijk is the toughest defender Jarrod Bowen has ever faced
Jarrod Bowen has been West Ham United’s star man for as long as many can remember, with Ally McCoist even dubbing him “something special.”
When the winger was brought in all those years ago, nobody knew how much of a legend he’d become to the Hammers.
Even though clubs such as Liverpool have shown an interest in him over the years, the Englishman has stayed loyal to the Hammers, much to Danny Dyer’s delight.
However, when asked who the toughest defender he’d ever faced was by BBC Sport, he simply replied: “Van Dijk.”
Virgil van Dijk must mentor Giovanni Leoni while he’s still a Liverpool player
The 2025-26 summer transfer window was full of change for Liverpool.
Players such as Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak were brought in to help bolster Arne Slot’s attacking ranks after Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez both ended up exiting Anfield.
As well as adding some impressive attacking talent to their first-team squad, Slot also brought in some interesting defenders, such as Giovanni Leoni.
Before he joined Liverpool, Leoni wasn’t a well-known player outside of Italy, with clubs such as Inter Milan vying for his transfer due to the regular role he played for Parma in the Serie A last term.
However, since the Italian is still just 18 years old, he has plenty of room to grow and what better way is there to do that than to learn from the very best.
Van Dijk has two years left on his current deal with Liverpool, and before he leaves, he must ensure Leoni is mentored and ready to take over.
Of course, there isn’t any way to force this into happening, but as a parting gift to the club that won him two Premier League titles, he could try his best to mentor him to be the next 6’4 centre-back at Anfield.
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