Liverpool hero Gary Gillespie rates Virgil van Dijk as the best defender he has ever seen.

A stellar 2018-19 for club and country has put Liverpool's No.4 in contention to win the Ballon d'Or.

“Normally it is the players that catch the eye, the players that score the goals, that dribble and beat people, that create opportunities and I think it speaks volumes that he's even being talked about as winning the Ballon d'Or, the fact he's a centre-back," Gillespie told the LFC Later.

“For me, he's the best [defender] I've seen, absolutely. He's right up there, outstanding in every department [and] in one-on-one situations, and that's so key these days, with the way that modern teams play.

“Sometimes you are left in one-on-one situations and you just need to look at his stats last season: I think they were that not one player dribbled past him. I just think that's phenomenal."