Liverpool duo Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk’s 3 votes for 2023 FIFA The Best Men’s Player award won by Lionel Messi explored

Liverpool stars Mohamed Salah and Virgil Van Dijk cast their votes for the FIFA The Best Men’s Player 2023, which Lionel Messi went on to win.

Both Anfield legends are captains of their respective national teams, which gave them the right to vote. Now, their votes have been revealed, with the Liverpool duo voting for Lionel Messi as their first choice. Their other choices were Manchester City superstars Erling Haaland and Kevin de Bruyne, who both helped the English giants to the treble last season:

The last time Van Dijk, Salah, and Messi were on the field together, Liverpool overturned a 3-goal deficit to secure an unprecedented 4-3 aggregate victory over Barcelona. Messi's stellar performance at the Nou Camp a week earlier had put Barca in a commanding lead. However, Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk drove the Reds to one of the best Champions League comebacks of all time.

Messi enjoyed an impressive 2023, where he marked achievements with both PSG and Inter Miami. His contributions helped the Parisians to a Ligue 1 title win, and after he moved to the US, he led David Beckham's Inter Miami to their first-ever Leagues Cup triumph.

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Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk named Olivier Giroud toughest opponent, snubs Lionel Messi and others

Reds captain Virgil van Dijk has named AC Milan forward Olivier Giroud as his toughest opponent on the pitch. This choice comes despite Van Dijk having played against other superstars like Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Erling Haaland.

More recently, the Dutch defender has consistently faced Haaland, following the Norwegian's move to Manchester City in 2023. Yet, it is Giroud, who previously had Premier League stints with Arsenal and Chelsea, who Van Dijk has picked.

In an interview with France Football, the Dutch center-back said (via GOAL):

"I think that Olivier Giroud [is the toughest attacker I have played against]. Every time, you think you’ve got a hold of him, that you’ve got him well marked, but he always manages to score in one way or another: with his head, his foot, his knee. He has often scored against me (smiles)."

Interestingly, Giroud has only scored twice against Van Dijk. Once, while the forward played for Chelsea, and another when France met the Netherlands in a 2019 match.