In light of Ruben Dias’ remarkable form this term for Manchester City, Robbie Savage has made the rather bold claim that the Portuguese has had a greater impact at City than Van Dijk at Liverpool.
With 13 clean sheets in 21 league games, the highest in the Premier League, Pep Guardiola’s backline has been imperious this season.
“The amount of clean sheets that they have kept [is a lot] and the way John Stones has improved is quite remarkable,” the Welsh pundit told BT Sport Score. “His impact on Man City has been better than Van Dijk’s impact on Liverpool.”
The former Benfica star signed for the Cityzens last year for £65m, being touted as Vincent Kompany’s long-term replacement.
In fairness to Savage, Dias has arguably been the standout centre-back of the season, next to midfielder-turned-defender Fabinho at Liverpool.
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That being said, it’s one thing to state that the 23-year-old has had a brilliant season for City, and quite another to suggest that he’s had a greater impact than Van Dijk at Anfield.
Given that the Dutchman joined an arguably worse-off Liverpool side and helped transform them into a title-winning team, we’d have to say that the pundit is rather off the mark when it comes to comparing the two centre-halves.