Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk has named one Manchester City player as being one of the toughest opponents he’s ever come up against.
The Dutchman has come up against a lot of attacking players during his time in the Premier League.
With the centre-back in yet another title race with Liverpool, he has taken the time to share who some of the toughest opponents he’s faced are, with one current City player getting mentioned.
Van Dijk names City star as one of his toughest opponents
Featuring in a recent episode of The Rest Is Football, Van Dijk had this to say about Erling Haaland when asked to name some of the hardest players he’s faced in his career.
He said: “I would say Erling Haaland is a very difficult opponent, very strong, modern-day striker. That directness, if you give them an inch, they will punish you.”
Having scored 81 goals in 88 appearances for City, prior to their Premier League away clash against Crystal Palace, it’s safe to say that the 23-year-old is a top goalscorer.
As well as that, the striker has shown that his pace is also a key aspect of his game, racking up a top speed of 36.22 km/h in the Premier League last season, the eighth-highest in the division.
With that in mind, and the fact that Van Dijk highlighted his strength as being another reason why the City star is so tough to play against, it’s easy to see why the Liverpool defender has named Haaland as one of his hardest opponents.
Taking into account how the Norway international scored 54 goals in 59 Premier League appearances and has racked up the second-highest number of shots at goal in the league this season (91), it’d be safe to assume that Van Dijk isn’t the only top-flight defender that has found it tough to play against Haaland.