La Liga
‘Van Dijk is never going to win the Ballon d’Or’
Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk will never win the Golden Ball, though he was close to defeating Lionel Messi in the race for him in 2019, according to Dutch legend Ruud Gull, who believes defenders will be ignored in voting for this price in the future.
A stunning 12 months from the Dutch quarterback made him one of the top three contenders for the most prestigious individual award.
Van Dijk was named Best UEFA Player of the Year, but was shortly defeated by Barcelona legend Lionel Messi for the FIFA Best of the Year award and Ballon d’Or.
Gullet fears the 28-year-old will never have a better chance of being declared the best in the world because he believes players who play in his position will not be as valued as others in the global elite.
“The message of Golden Ball was that he would never win it,” Gull told JOE.
Asked if Van Dijk should have won before Messi, the former Milan and Chelsea star said: “Yes, I think he should have.”
“But, you know, you can’t say Messi didn’t deserve it. But this was the best case for a defender to win it,” he added.