One year ago today, Liverpool fans received a late but great Christmas present in the shape of imperious defender Virgil van Dijk.
Liverpool fought off competition from Manchester City to acquire van Dijk's luxurious services, eventually shelling out a whopping £75 million.
It looks pretty cheap now, to be fair.
He's since become an integral part of Jurgen Klopp's set-up and arguably the best defender in the Premier League.
The Dutch international has kept an incredible 18 clean sheets since signing for Liverpool, and owns a bunch of remarkable statistics, too.
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Via Squawka:
- Most touches (2,846)
- Most minutes (2,845)
- Most passes (2,471)
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- Most duels won (213)
- Most clearances (173)
- Most aerial duels won (155)
- Most interceptions (38)
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- Most shots blocked (13)
Immense.
Naturally, he's getting high praise with Chris Sutton and Jamie Redknapp glowingly speaking about him.
Sutton reckons he's the best player in the world, while Redknapp believes he's three of the very best defenders in Premier League history rolled into one.
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"Think of the best defenders in Premier League history - John Terry, Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic. Van Dijk is all three players rolled into one," the ex-Liverpool midfielder said.
"He reads the game like Terry and is a lovely passer, getting the ball out of his feet and spraying 30-yard balls. Van Dijk is blessed with the pace of Rio, too. Rarely do you see him caught out in a one-v-one situation.
"While he is not as aggressive as Vidic, he has that same warrior spirit and will to win. He is calm, cool, composed in the air and is a brilliant leader."
van Dijk - what a defender, what a player. Just how highly do you rate him?
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Sound off in the comment section below.
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Manchester City, Liverpool, Football News, Christmas, Football, Premier League, Virgil Van Dijk, Jurgen Klopp
