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A common accusation levelled against the Liverpool captain is that he does not measure up to former greats like Rio Ferdinand — a current Premier League defender has now had his say on the debate.

It is, of course, a tired old discussion.

Ferdinand might have had that in his repertoire, but the context in which he played meant we did not see it regularly.

All things considered, you'd argue that being a center-back in the modern Premier League game requires you to be more well-rounded than ever.

And Van Dijk is certainly among the very best defenders around today.

He has routinely gained that recognition from his peers and from the media, once finishing just a handful of votes behind Lionel Messi in the race for the Ballon d'Or.

One Premier League defender has even braved the murky waters of the Van Dijk vs Ferdinand debate.

Indeed, Calvin Bassey settled a number of scores in one go.

Playing the "winner stays on" game with Mail Sport, Bassey gave Ferdinand the nod over a number of current and former stars, including Jaap Stam, Ledley King, William Saliba and Ruben Dias.

That's a telling verdict from someone who actually plays at Premier League level and knows the demands of the modern game.

Having said that, Van Dijk himself once put Ferdinand at the top of the list, leaving himself out of the top five altogether