Liverpool have had a rather successful past few years under the management of Jurgen Klopp in terms of the trophies they have been able to get their hands on both domestically and in Europe.
One player that has been a pivotal figure for the Reds in that time is Virgil van Dijk, who has made 205 appearances for the Merseyside club across all competitions, scoring 18 goals and delivering 11 assists along the way.
Having been on the receiving end of heavy praise by former Liverpool striker Michael Owen, the Dutchman is currently the second-highest earner at Anfield with a weekly wage of £220k-per-week.
Despite the 31-year-old having over two years left on his contract, the Reds may have found a potential candidate that could be their next version of Van Dijk in RB Leipzig defender Josko Gvardiol.
After joining Leipzig from Dinamo Zagreb back in the 2021 summer transfer window, the Croatian has gone on to make 71 appearances for the German club across all competitions, chipping in with three goals and four assists in the process.
In terms of being Liverpool’s next version of Van Dijk, the duo’s current domestic campaigns have shown how similar they are.
For example, in regards to their efforts in possession of the ball, not only do they have a similar passing accuracy percentage (88.5% vs 89.1%), they also have a similar total of progressive passes (76 vs 72).
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Then from a defensive standpoint, the pair have an almost identical combined total of tackles and interceptions (30 vs 29) as well as the number of recoveries they’ve made (90 vs 92).
Hailed as an “extraordinary” player by Ivica Olic, we feel the stats suggest Gvardiol has the talent to be a solid addition to Liverpool’s defence, especially if he can learn from someone like Van Dijk and become an even better player.
With all of that in mind, we feel that securing the Leipzig star’s signature should definitely be a top priority for the Merseyside club once the next summer transfer window opens for business.