The head start Joe Gomez has over Virgil van Dijk
Liverpool defender Joe Gomez has a head start on Virgil van Dijk.
That should make us all very excited.
The resurgence of Joe Gomez since he came back into the side in 2020 has been incredible to watch as Jurgen Klopp picked the England international against Bournemouth on the 7th December.
Before that he had struggle for game time as Joel Matip and Dejan Lovren were the preferred option to Virgil van Dijk. Gomez started the first game of the season against Norwich and then played just 17 minutes in the top flight until that fixture against the Cherries.
So why the excited chatter that he’s already world class?
It largely centres around the incredible 10 game run he had with van Dijk in which the side let in just one goal. Gomez looked the full package during that period. He’s quick, he’s strong, he tackles well and he can read the game.
And at 23-years-old, he’s already playing under one of the best managers in the world and has a Champions League winners medal to his name.
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He’s got such a huge head start on van Dijk it’s frightening. The Dutchman was considered a solid Premier League defender when he was at Southampton, nothing more really, and Liverpool were mocked for spending such a huge amount on the former Celtic man.
Van Dijk spend his formative years in the Eredivise and then the Scottish Premier League. Gomez already has 63 Premier League appearances to his name.
We’re looking at someone with the potential to be just as good as, if not better than, the Dutch international and someone who can form the bedrock of defence with him for the next three or four years.
After that, Gomez will only be coming into his theoretical prime and there’s no reason to suggest that we won’t be talking about the player the same way he do about Rio Ferdinand or John Terry.
One thing that could hold the England international back is his poor injury record, and he needs a full season to try and get rid of that reputation.
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As it stands, Gomez is miles ahead of van Dijk in his development curve and that should frighten oppositions and delight Liverpool fans in equal measure.