Arsenal star William Saliba’s France took on Virgil van Dijk’s Netherlands in their second group-stage game at Euro 2024.
The two centre-backs are up there with the best in the world. They are absolutely incredible and are key players for both club and country.
France and the Netherlands went into the game at the Red Bull Arena in Leipzig with a win under their belts from their opening fixtures.
It was expected to be a fascinating game and even though it ended 0-0, it was a great watch. Saliba and Van Dijk were both exceptional in defence for their respective teams.
However, Van Dijk’s disappointing run against a team with Saliba continues – the Dutchman has never won a game against the Arsenal number two.
READ MORE: Arsenal ace William Saliba says he’s one of the best PL defenders amid ‘funny’ Van Dijk claim
Arsenal fans make Virgil van Dijk claim after watching William Saliba at Euro 2024
Saliba has always been viewed as the next great defender and the heir to Van Dijk’s throne. The Dutchman, in many people’s eyes, has been the best centre-back in the world since he joined Liverpool.
After the draw between the Netherlands and France, many Arsenal fans took to X to claim that Van Dijk has passed the torch to Saliba, who is now the world’s best centre-back.
One Arsenal fan tweeted: “Van Dijk has passed the torch over to Saliba, clear as day Saliba is #1!”
“Van Dijk handed the baton over to Saliba long before this match,” said another.
Another fan said: “What a player William Saliba is, generational defender, the heir to Van Dijk.”
“Virgil van Dijk is shaking cause William Saliba is on the pitch,” wrote another.
Another Arsenal fan tweeted: “Took Van Dijk a long time to become “best ever” and Saliba is at equal rating with him only being 23.”
Saliba’s stats for France vs Netherlands are incredible
Saliba is shining on the world stage and we love it!
Many people questioned the Arsenal defender before Euro 2024 because France boss Didier Deschamps publicly criticised him.
It was widely expected that Liverpool’s Ibrahima Konate would start ahead of him, but Deschamps changed his mind about Saliba and that has proved to be the right decision.
Against the Netherlands on Friday night, Saliba had 91 touches of the ball and completed 85 of his 86 attempted passes, maintaining a stunning 99 per cent passing accuracy (SofaScore).
The 23-year-old lost possession just once in the entire game – the fewest among all outfield players on the pitch (ESPN).
The Saliba vs Van Dijk debate will not stop anytime soon, but the one thing everyone can agree on is that the Arsenal star has the chance to leave behind a bigger legacy than the Dutchman because he’s about a decade younger.
When their careers come to a close, we are convinced that Saliba will have achieved a lot more than Van Dijk.
Arsenal winners and losers at Euro 2024
In this week’s episode, Will Jones and Rahul Lakhani discussed the first few days of the European Championships. With Arsenal players such as Kai Havertz and Kieran Tierney experiencing mixed starts to the tournament, the pair assessed which Gunners were the winners and losers from the group stages so far.
There was some talk about transfers based off the Euros, with Arsenal-linked Amadou Onana’s display for Belgium discussed, whilst Leandro Trossard’s poor performance was analysed, and Bukayo Saka’s sensational England showing lauded.