Chiellini and Van Dijk are the best defenders in the world now
The mainstay of Juventus defender, Leonardo Bonucci, did not hesitate to praise Liverpool defender, Virgil Van Dijk. Together with Giorgio Chiellini, the Dutch national team player is considered the best defender in the world today.
Giorgio Chiellini himself is a senior defender for Juventus and the Italian national team. He has proven his quality in guarding the defense of the two teams for the last 10 years.
At Juventus, Chiellini has been a mainstay since 2005, he has presented a total of 18 titles for the Bianconneri so far. The 35-year-old defender is still a mainstay in the defense sector of the Italian national team.
Meanwhile, Virgil Van Dijk’s name has only surfaced since he was wearing Southampton shirt in 2017. Later, he was bought by Liverpool in 2018, and since then, his name has started to skyrocket.
The defender for the Dutch national team is an important part of the Merseyside club’s revival, especially in the last two seasons where they won four major titles, including the UCL and Premier League.
In the Dutch national team, Van Dijk’s role is quite important, he is even believed to be the captain of the main squad.
Interestingly, the Dutch national team and the Italian national team will face each other in this year’s UEFA Nations League continuation. It was before the match that Bonucci paid tribute to Chiellini and Van Dijk.
“We are lucky to see two of the best defenders in the world face off, like Giorgio Chiellini and Virgil van Dijk, who in my opinion are two of the top five,”
“Van Dijk proved himself in the Premier League and in international duty that he deserves the Ballon d’Or, while Giorgio has been the best for 15 years,” said Football Italia.
Furthermore, the former AC Milan player considers that there is a significant difference between the defense system of the Italian national team and the Dutch national team.
“The Dutch have a different defensive way than the Italian. They are more physical, while we are more focused on tactics,” explained Bonucci.
Evidence of this difference in defensive systems can be seen from Matthijs De Ligt, a young Dutch defender who had difficulty adapting to Juventus last season.