{"id":1092501,"date":"2019-06-06T14:27:12","date_gmt":"2019-06-06T13:27:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/?p=1092501"},"modified":"2019-06-06T14:27:12","modified_gmt":"2019-06-06T13:27:12","slug":"barcelona-legend-van-dijk-lionel-messi-ballon-dor","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/news\/barcelona-legend-van-dijk-lionel-messi-ballon-dor\/","title":{"rendered":"Barcelona legend backs Van Dijk to pip Lionel Messi to Ballon d’Or"},"content":{"rendered":"

Barcelona legend and Netherlands manager\u00a0Ronald Koeman has tipped Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk to clinch the 2019 Ballon d’Or ahead of Lionel Messi.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Van Dijk, 27, played a star role as the Reds clinched a sixth European crown last weekend, beating Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 in the Champions League final.<\/p>\n

Does Van Dijk deserve the Ballon d’Or? Five key things to know…<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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  1. Since joining Liverpool from Southampton in January 2018, Jurgen Klopp’s defence has been almost impenetrable.<\/li>\n
  2. Liverpool conceded just 22 league goals in 2018\/19 as the club finished runners-up with the third-best points total in the history of the competition.<\/li>\n
  3. Van Dijk was integral to that success, keeping the second-most clean sheets (20) of any player in the league.<\/li>\n
  4. As a reward for his fine form he clinched the Premier League Player of the Season and PFA Players’ Player of the Year.<\/li>\n
  5. Last weekend he helped guide Liverpool to a Champions League triumph in Madrid, and Koeman believes his skipper deserves the coveted Ballon d’Or gong as a result.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    https:\/\/audioboom.com\/posts\/7278637-klopp-must-solve-wenger-s-dilemma-to-take-liverpool-forward<\/p>\n

    Since Van Dijk pitched up at Anfield, Liverpool’s defence has transformed from leaky to watertight, and the Dutch centre-back has been the catalyst in that revamp.<\/p>\n

    His exploits helped keep a clean sheet at the Wanda Metropolitano, and he was immediately named as UEFA’s Man of the Match, capping off a quite breathtaking season for the mountainous centre-back.<\/p>\n

    And while many have shown support for Van Dijk – including former winger John Barnes<\/a> – to secure the Ballon d’Or later this year, the former Celtic defender provided his own ringing endorsement of Barca ace Messi.<\/p>\n

    “I think Messi is the best player in the world and I think he deserves it as long as he plays,” he said recently.<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    But national coach Koeman believes there will be no greater opportunity to award the Ballon d’Or to a defender, suggesting Van Dijk’s continental silverware puts him above Messi in the rankings.<\/p>\n

    “He deserves the Ballon d\u2019Or,” Koeman told Oranje\u2019s official YouTube channel<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    “Everyone is often focused on players who score or create goals, or produce decisive goals.<\/p>\n

    “If there is ever a moment to give the Ballon d\u2019Or to a defender, it is now.<\/p>\n

    “Messi is the best player but I also think you should win big trophies such as the Champions League to be in the picture for the Ballon d\u2019Or.”<\/p>\n