Georginio Wijnaldum has backed
his club and international teammate Virgil van Dik for this year's Ballon d'Or.
On Saturday, Wijnaldum said, "He already had a good season,
he is trying to stop everyone, that's the way he's playing.
"For us he's the best
defender in the world. If you look at his season, he definitely deserves the
Ballon d'Or but it's not up to us to decide."
Having scooped individual
prizes such as the PFA's Premier League Player of the Year award, Van Dijk
could become the first defender in 13 years to win the world's best player
award. He was also named Man of the Match for the Reds’ Champions
League final victory over Tottenham, and is preparing to take on his
ultimate challenge of the season in Portugal, in the final of the UEFA Nations
League today. The Netherlands take on Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal, who are in
the finals thanks to Ronaldo's hat-trick in a 3-1 win over Switzerland on
Wednesday.
No opposition player has
completed a dribble past Virgil van Dijk in any of his last 64 appearances in
all competetions for Liverpool. Raheem Sterling almost dribbled past the
Dutchman in the UEFA Nations league semi-final but Van Dijk had the last
laugh.
Will Virgil be able to maintain
this record against Cristiano Ronaldo today? If he does, his claim to the 2019
Ballon d'Or will be further reinforced. He and Lionel Messi are the two top
favorites as of now.
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