EPL 2018/2019 : 7 contenders for the PFA Player of the Season award

#1 Virgil van Dijk - Liverpool

Van Dijk has been a colossus at the back for Liverpool

A lot of eyebrows were raised when Liverpool splashed out £75m to being Virgil van Dijk to Anfield, making him the most expensive defender in history, but the Dutch international has proved to be worth every penny.

Before his arrival, Liverpool had a joke for a defense, with numerous comical errors costing the team points and titles, but there has been a marked difference since his arrival at Melwood.

Van Dijk possesses an excellent ability to read games and is also adept at positioning himself so that he rarely has to make a tackle, while also bringing his leadership abilities to the fore in marshaling his fellow defenders.

The transformation at Liverpool has been massive since his arrival, as The Reds have been forged into one of the most stable defensive units in Europe.

Under van Dijk's watch, Liverpool have conceded just 15 goals in 28 matches, with just seven of those coming at Anfield.

These are numbers which would scarcely have been believable less than a year ago and is the reason why Liverpool currently find themselves top of the league as they begin to dream of a first league title since 1989.

It is a well-known fact that great defenses win titles and if Liverpool can maintain their standards and win the Premier League, then a lot of it would be down to the impact of the 26-year-old Van Dijk since his arrival and this could see him become only the second defender in the Premier League era and first since John Terry in 2005 to be named the PFA Player of the Year.