Ex-Arsenal ace ends Virgil van Dijk vs William Saliba debate with definitive verdict

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Arsenal and Liverpool fans have been locked in the William Saliba vs Virgil van Dijk debate for a couple of years now.

The two central defenders are up there with the best in the world.

Van Dijk was arguably the biggest reason why Liverpool were successful under Jurgen Klopp, while Saliba has absolutely transformed Arsenal’s defence since he got into the team.

There are always disagreements when you’re trying to pick who’s better, but Carl Jenkinson has now delivered a definitive verdict on the debate.

Ex-Arsenal ace Carl Jenkinson delivers William Saliba vs Virgil van Dijk verdict

Jenkinson played with some excellent defenders during his time at Arsenal.

The Englishman rubbed shoulders with Laurent Koscielny when he was the best centre-back in the Premier League. He also played with Per Mertesacker, who is a World Cup winner.

So, Jenkinson is a fairly good judge when it comes to defenders, and the former Arsenal ace was asked a few questions on talkSPORT.

Darren Bent asked Jenksinon if he thinks Saliba is the best defender in the world right now. Then, when talking about the Premier League, Andy Goldstein prompted Van Dijk’s name.

Jenkinson, however, was not having that and immediately claimed that Saliba is better than the Liverpool captain right now.

He said: “He’s definitely in the conversation, yeah. I don’t watch enough football around the world to comment on if he’s the best in the world, but I think, now, as we sit here, he’s better than Van Dijk!

“I think Van Dijk, in his prime, is one of the best the Premier League has ever seen. Is he quite the same player these days? I don’t know. That’s my reasoning behind (saying) Saliba is better.”

READ MORE: Three things that make Virgil van Dijk and William Saliba so ‘similar’

What has happened when Saliba and Van Dijk have faced each other?

A good way to look at who the better player is would be to see their performances against each other over the years.

Saliba and Van Dijk have faced one another on four different occasions – thrice in the Premier League and once in the group stage of Euro 2024.

The Arsenal man has come out on top in the two games that took place at the Emirates, while the other two ended as draws.

Arsenal fans felt Saliba was better than Van Dijk in that Euro 2024 clash between France and the Netherlands earlier this summer.

Saliba is undefeated against Van Dijk when the two players have come up against each other. That should give the Frenchman an edge in this debate.

To add to that, Saliba still has over a decade left at the top level, so we are certain that he will leave behind a bigger legacy when he retires than the Liverpool captain.