Micah Richards has been full of praise for one Liverpool player.
Speaking on the BBC Match of the Day Top 10 Podcast, Richards has been discussing who he believes are going to be the stars of Euro 2024, and Virgil van Dijk was one player the pundit highlighted.
The pundit stated that Van Dijk remains an underappreciated player, claiming that the defender was incredible this season despite the fact he had to work in a makeshift back four most of the time.
Micah Richards praises Virgil van Dijk
Richards spoke highly of Van Dijk and how he has performed this season in a defence that has had to change a lot.
“He’s had to marshal that backline. Trent has been out, Robertson has been out, you’ve had Quansah and Bradley at the back. People don’t understand, you talk about Liverpool going for a title, there are kids there, but Van Dijk is always there, he’s unbelieavable, what a player he is,” Richards said.
Van Dijk’s colossal job
Richards is right, Van Dijk hasn’t got enough credit for the job he has done this season.
Yes, Liverpool fell short in the title race, but, at the end of the day, they ran Arsenal and Manchester City close for a long time without three of their four first choice defenders.
Van Dijk was almost a one-man army at the back at times as he had to work alongside an out of position Joe Gomez at left-back and two youngsters to the right of him.
However, his experience and quality ultimately shone through and he’s helped these young players grow into stars.
Van Dijk may not have won as many individual honours this season, but there is a real case to make for this being the Dutchman’s most impressive campaign in a Liverpool shirt to date.