Former Liverpool and England defender Jamie Carragher has named Kevin de Bruyne and Virgil van Dijk as the two best players in the Premier League.
Belgium playmaker De Bruyne has established himself as one of the best players in world football since joining Manchester City in 2015 and has won two Premier League titles, four EFL Cups and one FA Cup during his spell at the Etihad.
De Bruyne was hoping to inspire City to a third successive Premier League title this season but Pep Guardiola’s defence came to an end last week as Liverpool clinched their first title in 30 years.
Van Dijk has been one of if not the most important player at Anfield over the past two seasons and helped Jurgen Klopp’s side win the Champions League before they finally ended their long wait for a domestic title.
‘Kevin de Bruyne is, for me, the best player in the Premier League,’ Carragher told the Sky Sports Football Preview podcast. ‘Certainly it’s a toss-up between him and Virgil van Dijk
‘If I could pick one player to have in my team, it’s a toss-up between those two.
‘When De Bruyne is in space at the Etihad and he gets on that ball and he’s playing passes or crosses, it is a joy to watch.’
New Premier League champions Liverpool travel to the Etihad to face Manchester City on Thursday evening and Carragher expects a tight game.
‘It will be a tough game for both teams,’ he added. ‘Can Liverpool control Kevin de Bruyne? And can City’s back four cope with Liverpool’s front three?
‘I think those are the big questions, really. If Liverpool can stop that man in midfield, I think that will stop a lot of City.
‘But it’s whether Guardiola comes up with something a little bit different for Liverpool’s front three. He could go with three at the back, or with a more defensive full-back, as he did in this fixture last year when he put Laporte at left-back.
‘He always seems to have something a little bit different up his sleeve against Liverpool, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he did something like that.
‘I don’t think Liverpool will try change anything drastically. We know what they are about and how they play and who their best team is.
‘I think we saw that against Crystal Palace. I think it will be a similar team to that.
‘But there’s no doubt that they will have to deal with Kevin de Bruyne, because if they don’t deal with him it will make it really difficult for them.’
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