Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk has showered praise on Arsenal defender William Saliba, admitting that he was “nowhere near” the level of the Arsenal star at the same age.
Arsenal are currently one of the best teams in Europe and this can be attributed to their defense. William Saliba and Gabriel have formed a great partnership with David Raya also ensuring the goal post is safe.
Despite only being 23 years old, Saliba has continued to receive praise from fans.
The Frenchman’s playing style and stature has been compared to that of Liverpool captain Van Dijk, and the Dutchman has opened up on the Gunners star.
William Saliba and Gabriel during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Leicester City (Photo by David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
When asked about the centre-backs that impress him on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast, Van Dijk said: “Obviously, Saliba’s making very good steps at the moment. He’s the first one I just have in mind now. He’s a solid one. I think in possession, he’s doing a good job.
“I think, if I’m honest, when I was that age, I was nowhere near where he was today. Obviously, that’s the beauty of football as well, I like to watch other defenders and pick up so many stuff from them. There are so many good ball players and centre halves. When you watch the game, I definitely watch games, especially on the highest level, you can always pick up certain things.
“But I also have in mind that teams are defending in a different way than we are defending, so you have to keep that in mind too. I think, especially in ball possession, the way you position yourself, because obviously we are a team that has the ball a lot. I play on the left side as a right footer, centre-half, obviously for many years. Sometimes it’s good to pick up the positioning of certain players and what they do. I feel like, at any age, you can keep learning and I definitely still do that.”
Van Dijk is considered one of the best centre-backs in the history of the Premier League and it’s left to see if Saliba will be able to reach the top.
While Saliba is yet to win the Premier League with Arsenal, Van Dijk led Liverpool to a league title in 2020 and the Champions League a year prior in 2019, after which he just lost out on the Ballon d’Or to Lionel Messi.
