Arsenal defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos has spoken about his admiration for fellow center back Virgil Van Dijk.

Sokratis has come in for significant criticism at his club for his performances this season.

The experienced Greek defender knows how hard it is to maintain a level of consistency in top flight football.

And he admires all that Van Dijk has achieved, both personally and as a team with Liverpool.

"What Virgil van Dijk did last year was something very difficult for every defender to do. Last year for him was perfect, especially for all the people close to him who helped him a lot," said Sokratis told the official Arsenal website.

"He was very good and it was a good year for him. With the way football is going in front, especially when everybody thinks about offensive players and how they can score more, I think the defenders need to start getting more credit."