Raheem Sterling has congratulated Virgil van Dijk on winning UEFA Men’s Best Player award, further showing his new-found maturity.
Van Dijk beat Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to the prize on Thursday evening, following an outstanding year with the Reds.
It further highlights his chances of winning the Ballon d’or at the end of the year, cementing his reputation as one of the best defenders of his generation.
Sterling took to Twitter to pass on his best wishes to a player he has enjoyed some excellent battles with in recent years, and these Liverpool fans have reacted to the gesture on the social media site.
Class
— 🇸🇱 🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆 (@hazza_0000000) August 29, 2019
Stop making me like you
— Jack (@JackCPC_) August 29, 2019
Fair play
— Craig Williams (@williamscraig85) August 29, 2019
Respect Raheem 🤝
— 🇮🇪 (@lfcxcathal) August 29, 2019
Read Liverpool Verdict
Sterling took plenty of stick when he traded Liverpool for City in 2015, partly due to the way he behaved in pushing through an exit.
The forward has matured so much since then, however, and this was a nice gesture.
Van Dijk is rightly being lauded left, right and centre for his brilliance, following this latest award win.
He is one of the most admired footballers on the planet right now and a Ballon d’Or triumph would only add to his ever-growing legend.
