Gini Wijnaldum was exceptional in 2018 in the centre of Liverpool’s midfield.
He scored in the Champions League semi-final against Roma, bossed huge games against the biggest teams, and has been the club’s best midfield performer in the 2018-19 season so far.
The Dutchman has truly been brilliant in recent months; it is amazing to think he was being linked with a move away from the club during the summer with new arrivals like Naby Keita and Fabinho tipped to limit his game time.
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Always known for being a workaholic in the centre of the pitch, his passing statistics have been unbelievable – he possesses hugely underrated technical ability.
Of those Reds players to have completed more than 300 passes in 2018, Wijnaldum has the highest accuracy, averaging just over 90 per cent for the year as a whole.
For someone in the midfield to have a figure like that is simply staggering.
Virgil van Dijk, who as a centre-back can boost his statistics with simple passes along the backline, achieved a figure of 88.7 per cent, to put it into context.
Wijnaldum’s ball retention is superb and he will no doubt continue to be a hugely influential figure for the Reds in 2019.