Virgil van Dijk confirmed Jamie Carragher’s view on the defender after his brilliant display against Inter Milan in the Champions League.
Liverpool took a massive step towards the quarter-finals of the competition after two late goals at the San Siro.
With 15 minutes to go, Roberto Firmino converted Andy Robertson’s corner with a fantastic glancing header in the first shot on target of the match.
That lead was doubled soon after when Mohamed Salah’s deflected effort left Samir Handanovic motionless.
It was quite the turnaround from a match where Inter had largely been on top with Hakan Calhanoglu particularly impressive.
But they could not break down a Liverpool defence that was marshalled expertly by Van Dijk.
Reds legend Carragher had been singing the Dutchman’s praises prior to the Champions League tie and he did everything to confirm his thoughts.
“As a young centre back I wouldn’t model my game on Virgil van Dijk because he’s a freak of nature, he’s too good if you understand what I’m saying,” Carragher said.
“His whole physical presence, how big he is, quick he is and strong he is, how effortless he is on the ball, you can’t practice that. He’s been born with gifts.
“Van Dijk could play with a cigar and still be fine.”
One incident saw an increasingly frustrated Lautaro Martinez give up even trying when one-on-one with Van Dijk.
The Argentine realised he did not have the pace to beat the defender and pulled away while his Liverpool opponent simply shackled the forward in.
Eventually, Thiago Alcantara came and put the ball out for a corner while Van Dijk went on to receive the man of the match award.
The £80m man missed most of last season with a serious knee injury but has returned to action this year as good as ever.
It is made all the more impressive by the fact that a lot of players that suffer from anterior cruciate ligament injuries fail to regain their pace from before, especially in the latter years of their career.
And though it was a good night for Jurgen Klopp’s men, there was one negative when Diogo Jota was forced off through injury.
"The ankle was swollen at the break so we had to change," the German coach said. "Twisted ankle, it was swollen. So that's not a good sign but we have to see.
"We will check it as early as possible tomorrow [Thursday] but we need further assessment."
