Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk hails ‘exceptional’ Barcelona star after international clash | OneFootball

Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk has moved to reveal his appreciation for the talents of Barcelona youngster Pau Cubarsí.

This comes after the pair locked horns on the international stage on Thursday night.

En route to a 2-2 Nations League stalemate between Spain and The Netherlands, Cubarsí and Van Dijk took their respective places at the heart of defence.

And, evidently, the latter was impressed by what he saw on the part of Barcelona’s defensive prodigy.

Cubarsí was for his part forced into a premature departure from the action in Rotterdam, owing to an ankle problem.

But despite his evening having been cut short, the 18-year-old had long done enough to leave his mark on one of world football’s standout defenders.

“Pau Cubarsí? He’s exceptional,” Van Dijk began. “I think he has enormous talent, a special player. At just 18 years old and playing at this level, it’s already impressive. He also looks for long passes, a lot, and he’s good at that. I felt sad about his injury.”

Conor Laird – GSFN