Liverpool captain virgil van dijk has named four former and present premier league forwards as his toughest opponents. Olivier giroud, an ex-arsenal and chelsea striker, claims to have always managed to get the better of him: “you think you’ve got a hold of him, that you’ve got him well marked,” van dijk says, “but he always scores in one way or another: with his head, his foot, and his knee. Van dijk said that giroud was not the only striker he mentioned, though, as manchester city’s sergio aguero and erling haaland, as well as arsenal’s gabriel jesus, were all “difficult” to play against.
Van Dijk has won his fair share of battles against strikers:
Although van dijk has suffered form declines in recent years, especially in the last two years, he is still one of the best centre-backs of the premier league. There are few players out there who can tackle aguero and haaland, but giroud and jesus have their own playing styles that make life difficult for defenders. Van dijk is the one who comes out on top.
Liverpool have the best defence in the Premier League:
Although many pundits have praised jurgen klopp’s side’s attacking play this season, it should also be noted that the reds have managed to tighten things up at the back. Although the merseyside club finished fifth last season, the backline has struggled, but there has been a big improvement so far this season, with just 18 goals conceded in 20 games, the best result in the top flight. Van dijk deserves a lot of credit for that. In recent months, mainstays of the defence, such as andy robertson, trent alexander-arnold, and joel matip, have all been hospitalized, and liverpool’s captain has been the one constant in keeping things running.
