Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher says Virgil van Dijk must win trophies to be considered the best defender in world football.

Van Dijk has certainly elevated his play since moving to Anfield from Southampton in January and was pivotal in the Reds' run to the Champions League final.

But Carragher believes the Dutchman will have to start collecting silverware to compared with Real Madrid duo Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane.

"I think he's [Van Dijk} right in the top group. Some people may put him top," Carragher told Soccer AM.

"I would just hang fire with that with the fact he hasn't won the biggest trophies yet. I think you have to do that.

"You want to be known as the best in whatever position, you've got to have something on the CV - Premier League, Champions League.

"He got to the final last season. But I think the two players at the other end of the pitch in Ramos and Varane, not so much that they're better players than Virgil van Dijk, but they've won Champions Leagues, both won the World Cup.

"When you've got that on the CV, it's hard to look past."