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#1 Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool and the Netherlands)
Virgil van Dijk's role in Liverpool’s recent successes and his status as a favourite this award season have been talked about for several months and rightly so. What the attacking contenders achieved in the final third of the field, the Dutchman did more at defence.
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The 28-year-old was named the 2019 PFA Player of the Year at the end of the Premier League campaign after transforming the Reds defence into one of the most impenetrable in Europe. The Dutch international commandeered the back-line alongside the likes of Alisson Becker, Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold to maintain several vital clean sheets for the Merseyside club.
The centre-back was even credited with the now-infamous stat claiming he has not been dribbled past in any competitive game over the course of the 2018/19 season.
Van Dijk's influence in Liverpool's Champions League win and their incredible 97-point haul in the Premier League together with the Netherlands' journey to the UEFA Nations League final will undoubtedly earn him multiple points in the race for the FIFA Best Men's Player award.
