Remember he went all out to get his move to Liverpool from Southampton. Who’s to say he won’t do the same to Liverpool if if Real or Barca come in for him
Virgil Van dijk: UEFA Player of the year
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik and Imran hold a long overdue conversation about United's awful league form with 1 win in 7. They discuss a disappointing draw at Bournemouth, a not so disappointing draw against Liverpool and a crushing defeat at Chelsea - Is time nearly over for Erik Ten Hag?
Then in a special second half of the pod, Nik welcomes Natalie ( https://twitter.com/natalie_17) to discuss the fortunes of Manchester United Women as they booked a place in the FA Cup Final after a historic first ever win vs. Chelsea.
At last. Defenders get the credit they deserve.
Why the big individual prizes in football only go to attackers has always astounded me.
Why the big individual prizes in football only go to attackers has always astounded me.
Because the overall impact of a world class attacker is much greater than that of a defender.
Liverpool lost one Premier League game all season conceding just 22 goals along the way
, oh and they and won the Champions League. So yeah, absolutely VVD had a better season than Messi.Bullshit.
Aye. If Barcelona had VVD in their side, I'd imagine it'd have been them lifting ol big ears rather than Liverpool.
Debatable. In the past, attackers made the difference when the team was built on defence. That isnt true nowadays. In a successful team, you need world class players on both sides of the pitch. In todays football, world class defenders stand out massively IMO and are worth every penny
Attackers are more thrilling though and easier to be a fan of.
VVD in that team instead of Messi? No chance.
So who are they?
VVD wouldn't get half the credit and acclaim he's getting now, if the likes of Mane and Salah weren't banging them in on the other side to actually win them games and trophies.
Who said instead of Messi?
Goes both ways that.
So I don't get it...
What you're saying is, last seasons CL semi finalist would've won the CL if they managed to add the winning teams best player? Yeah I agree.
Because they were just better. Which defender do you think deserved to win it in the last decade but didn't?
Well, the guy that won the trophy last night for starters? I'd say the serious lack of world class CBs these days actually makes Van Dijk stand out even more.
Salah was POTY 2 seasons ago, and Liverpool didn't have VVD for half of that. Attackers are far less reliant on their defenders than vice-versa.
It's backed up by the transfer market, where the best attackers regularly demand greater sums than their defensive counterparts.
Absolutely. So despite having the best forward in the World, Barca came up short. Liverpool didn't.
So defenders are every bit as important as attackers.
As for "I don't get it". The original post I responded to was:
"Because the overall impact of a world class attacker is much greater than that of a defender."
Which, is nonsense.
People spending more money on "meh" like Coutinho and James isn't "backing up" any point whatsoever.
What competitions did Salah win 2 seasons ago?
Embarassing from some United fans here trying to talk down everything Liverpool do lately. Makes us look deluded as feck.
Might have been the CL if it wasn't for a bit of bad luck in the final.
The fee paid for players is irrelevant to their overall impact on a team. It's pure nonsense that an attacker has a greater influence on a team than a midfielder or a defender and it just depends on the player himself.
Liverpool had the best defender in the world the season before, they also came up short.
So the answer was nothing. Cheers.
They won the biggest competition in club football.
As a United fan, I hope we come up short every year.
Spin it how you like, VVD was a massive part of Liverpool losing one league game all season and winning the CL, he absolutely deserves this award and is every bit as important to Liverpool as Salah.
I'm pretty sure it was Real Madrid who won it then. Who definitely didn't have the best defender in the world.
It isn't right but that is exactly the reason. That is the only Messi match in people's memory and that is what the voting is based on.
One goal the other way and Messi cleans up all the awards.
Attackers don't cost more than midfielders and defenders for nothing.
Ah, "the season before". Missed that.
I don't get your point, mine is pretty fecking simple, VVD was a massive part of Liverpool losing one league game all season and winning the CL, he absolutely deserves this award and is every bit as important to Liverpool as Salah.
What's your point @Skills? Are you telling me the above is not true?
It's a daft point that @kouroux, because both Dembele and Coutinho cost Barca miles more than VVD... yet are you telling me Barca wouldn't have been a much better side without these two attackers and with the Dutchman?
I'd argue top clubs try harder to keep their very top defenders. Look at Koulibaly for example, yet Napoli let their best midfielder Jorginho go without any real fight. Very very rarely do you see a top side selling their best CB.
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Ugh, I hate saying it but he deserves it. He's colossal in that defence. And what's more annoying is that he's never injured!
This is my take away from this thread. Love it how Mane slips under the radar. Would explain why there is no serious clamour to prise him away from us. Madrid 'asked' half heartedly but no real push to unsettle him or willingness to throw big money.
Fans and scouts are bemused alike because he doesn't have the 'stats'. It's beautiful.
Those 2 yes, because Barcelona massively overpaid for those 2.
There's much better attacking players than those 2 though.
I'm talking world class players. Do you believe Van Dijk has an equal level of impact on a single game as Messi and Ronaldo?
The point was that clubs spend more on attackers, and these two prove that's normally a fecking stupid idea. That's the whole point man.
Barca should have spent that Neymar money on Koulibaly or VVD but attackers appease fans more and get the juices flowing for the marketing departments.
Yeah I'm not really disagreeing with you on why clubs spend more on attackers.
As for what they should done with that Neymar money, they should have pocketed it for a season IMO and then spent it, but they panicked.
I personally don't think they needed to buy a CB, but obviously if they could have gotten Koulibaly or VVD, you make the signing.
Marketability is one thing, for starters.
What "overall greater impact" did Ronaldo have on Juve last season? They still won the same things they always win. His overall impact on the team was far less than Van Dijk's impact on Liverpool, and that's irrespective of transfer fees. Diego Godin cost Atlético €8m yet his impact on their style of play was bigger than any attacker they signed during his time there.
It depends on the player individually, so it's daft to say that attackers overall have a greater impact on a team than other types of players. And even if you believe that, transfer fees don't matter one bit in the discussion. If we signed Lewandowski for €200m in January he wouldn't (positively) impact our level whatsoever, regardless of his fee.
VVD went for 75m just a few months after they signed Coutinho and Dembele, so in essence they bought VVD for Liverpool.
Idiots. Personally think they should have spent on a CB, and pocketed the rest, the transfer market would have been much better off for it also.
As Ronaldo, yes. As Messi, on average not. But one single game doesn't mean anything over the course of a season, which was perfectly illustrated last season. Over a whole season, a defender can have as big a, if not a bigger impact on a team than an attacker. I might be inclined to agree on Messi but just because he's otherworldly.
A United fan should know better also, when Rio didn't play we never looked the same side and the way our team went after selling Stam....
