Former Manchester United striker Andy Cole believes he would be Virgil van Dijk’s “worst nightmare” as an opponent.
Cole enjoyed great success at Old Trafford during the 1990s, proving to be one of the Premier League’s most formidable attacking players.
Meanwhile, Van Dijk has been a sensational signing by Liverpool, transforming the defence and gaining a reputation as the world’s leading centre-back.
Speaking to Sunday World, Cole was praiseworthy of the Reds superstar, but also claimed he could expose the rare flaws in his game:
Van Dijk is a really good player, but I’m the kind of individual who would love to have played against him – and I feel like I would have got to him.
You want to test yourself against the best and he is the best at the moment, without a doubt, but I like to look at defenders and find weaknesses in them and we have seen a few with Van Dijk in the last few months.
I watched him in the opening game of the season against Leeds and the strikers who give him problems are the ones who run in behind him and stretch him. They scored three goals that day and he didn’t look like he enjoyed the experience.
He is a Rolls Royce of a defender, but he didn’t like putting his foot down and chasing back when people were getting in behind him.
That’s what I would have done all day when I was at my best, so I would probably have been his worst nightmare if I was playing against him.
Read Liverpool Verdict
I think there has been an overreaction to the supposed dip in form by Van Dijk in recent months – some people are desperate to pick holes in anything.
The 29-year-old may have made a few errors after Liverpool had won the title last season, with one coming away to Arsenal, but they came at a time when concentration levels had understandably dipped.
Van Dijk may have then been a long way from his best against Leeds United and Aston Villa this season, with the Reds conceding 10 goals in those two matches, but others were far more blameless.
Joe Gomez has been the main culprit in that respect, producing a two-out-of-10 performance at Villa, according to This Is Anfield. Van Dijk hasn’t been blameless, but he is far from the issue.
The Dutchman also produced a masterful performance in the 3-1 win over Arsenal recently, completing 77 passes in the first half – an all-time Premier League record in a 45-minute period – and dominating the Gunners’ attack.
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