Virgil van Dijk’s stunning year should end with Ballon d’Or glory – an incredible achievement considering his rivals for the award.
The 28-year-old won UEFA Men’s Best Player award on Thursday night, at the draw for the Champions League group stage.
Van Dijk beat Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to the prize, with the pair regarded by many as the two greatest footballers to have played the game.
It has now been revealed how much the Liverpool centre-back won the award by.
The Dutchman received 305 points in the voting, while Messi earned 207 and Ronaldo got 74.
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Van Dijk’s personal glory was richly deserved, considering he has transformed Liverpool from shaky defensive outfit to Champions League winners in no time.
His performances have arguably been as dominant and consistent as any centre-back over the past decade.
The Dutchman is quite comfortably Liverpool’s most important player, despite the Reds possessing four or five other world class talents, and he holds the key to their future success.
Van Dijk is now the strong favourite to scoop the prestigious Ballon d’Or later this year – if he wins it, he will become to first defender to do so since Fabio Cannavaro in 2006.
That would really cement his reputation as a true great of the game.
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