Arsenal defender William Saliba says he is a huge admirer of Virgil van Dijk’s game.

While the Liverpool defender has had his struggles over the past twelve months, Saliba has claimed that he still watches clips of the Dutchman as he looks to improve as a centre-back:

“I still watch him! I really like his quality in one-against-one, his calmness, his composure and his long balls as well. He has everything and, for me, he was a good defender to learn from. I think he was, for two or three years, the best defender in the world.”

Saliba uses the past tense when talking about van Dijk being the “best” centre-half out there, and that’s probably fair, considering the 32-year-old did not have the best year for the Reds.

Van Dijk readily admitted himself that his confidence took a knock last season, and fans will be hoping he can recover his best form for the start of the 2023/24 campaign.

Liverpool are in the market for a new centre-back

With van Dijk now the wrong side of 30, it is not surprising that the Reds are looking at a potential long-term successor for the Netherlands captain.

Recruiting a left-sided centre-half is believed to be on the agenda, but finding one that has the requisite talent, and is also available, is proving to be pretty tricky.

The club’s recruitment team are known to be big fans of Chelsea’s Levi Colwill but he is now expected to stay at Stamford Bridge, especially after the serious knee injury sustained by Wesley Fofana.

Alternatives, such as Sporting Lisbon’s Goncalo Inacio and Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi have been suggested, along with Wolfsburg’s Ricky van de Ven and Torino’s Perr Schuurs, but there isn’t really a standout candidate emerging at the moment. That could still change over the coming weeks.