Former Everton and Egypt defender, Ibrahim Said, believes he is better than Liverpool centre-back Virgil van Dijk.
The Dutchman has been a solid rock for the Reds since he joined from Southampton in January 2018, helping the Merseyside club to the Champions League, Uefa Super Cup, Club World Cup and most recently the Premier League which they clinched for the first time under the current format and first since 1990 when it was the old English First Division.
The 28-year old has made 115 appearances for Liverpool, scoring 11 goals and providing six assists.
He is famously known for going 65 games without getting dribbled past until Manchester City’s Gabriel Jesus did it in the 2019 Community Shield at Wembley which City won 5-4 on penalties after ending 1-1 in regular time.
“I am more skilled than Van Dijk, because he plays in only one position, while I have been playing in more than one. Certainly, I’m better than him,” Said told Egyptian TV channel TEN.
Said went on to stress that Van Dijk has a negative in that he loses focus at times. He also says the presence of strong teammates helps him shine on the pitch.
“I talk seriously about this, if you compare me to him, you will find that there is a huge difference between us in everything, because he has a negative, which is that when he loses his focus, [he plays] completely incorrectly,” Said continued.
“The possibilities he possesses, in addition to his teammates, make any player shine at this level, I am seriously talking about this.”
“[Van] Dijk is a good defender, but sometimes he makes mistakes like all defenders in the world.”
Said was loaned to Everton from Al Ahly in 2003 but he failed to make a single appearance for the Toffees.
read also:Van Dijk ‘happy to be back’ despite derby disappointment
He enjoyed his best days with Ahly, winning the Egyptian Premier League, Egyptian Cup, Caf Champions League and Caf Super Cup.
Said also won 49 caps with the Egypt national team between 2000 and 2008, winning the Africa Cup of Nations with the Pharaohs in 2006 on home soil and in 2008 in Ghana.