Following Sunday’s League Cup final, in which Liverpool beat Chelsea to lift the trophy for the 10th time, football fans have been left arguing amongst themselves as to who was better, Virgil van Dijk or Vincent Kompany— and the debate is as furious as it is funny.
The Dutch centre-back scored the only goal to win the EFL Cup for the second time and once again proved to be the difference for Liverpool, but his decisive action also sparked the debate amongst Scousers and more as to where he lands amongst the greatest Premier League centre-back of all time.
Well, it wasn’t much of a debate for half of Merseyside, as a number of posts on social media were quick to proclaim van Dijk as the very best in history, brushing past plenty of other options like John Terry, Nemanja Vidić and more, but most notably it would seem, Man City legend Vincent Kompany.
Safe to say people on both sides are staunchly defending both center-halves just as much as each other and it’s produced some classic online footy fan discussion and downright outrage in some cases.
The 32-year-old’s trophy cabinet now includes two EFL Cups, a Premier League title and the Champions League, an FA Cup; a Charity Shield, the UEFA Super Cup and a Club World Cup, not to mention multiple personal accolades.
By no means a bad haul whatsoever, but now let’s compare it to Kompany‘s tally here during his time in Blue: four league titles, four EFL Cups, two FA Cups and a pair of Charity Shields. More domestic success certainly, but van Dijk’s done it in Europe too — depends on how you weigh everything up.
One of the key differences noted by many supporters between the two in the wake of van Dijk’s man-of-the-match performance was that whereas he scored a winner in the Carabao Cup, Kompany scored an absolute iconic screamer to go top of the league and effectively beat Liverpool to the title in 2018/19.
As for scoring winners in cup finals, many a player has achieved that feat (defenders included) and beyond just the current Burnley manager himself, the floor has also been opened plenty by fans who think there is a laundry list of other names that come ahead of the Liverpool star.
No, lol. Nemanja Vidić (4x TOTY, 2x POTY), Rio Ferdinand (6x), Tony Adams (4x) Vincent Kompany (3x, 1x), Sol Campbell (3x) John Terry (4x), Jaap Stam (3x) & Gary Pallister (x7) all have cases or are clearly better than van Dijk.
I’ve been saying it for years so don’t think it’s reactionary. Van Dijk is the best centre back I’ve seen in the Premier League. Everyone loves nostalgia and never give players their flowers until they’re gone. I watched Terry, Vidic and Kompany get clowned regularly. Not him.
Deserve to be locked in a mental asylum if you’re gonna try to claim Steve Bruce, Tony Adams, Kompany and Steve Bruce are better than Van Dijk https://t.co/s9rQLHigu2
We’re not even going to pretend to have an answer to this one, we’re just going to sit back and enjoy the to-and-fro whilst waiting for the next one to inevitably roll around soon enough.
All we will say is that Kompany captained one of the most dominant sides this country has ever seen and we’ll comfortably stick our neck out and say that ‘Vinny, don’t shoot!’ moment wasn’t just better than VVD’s extra-time header but is probably one of the most iconic goals in Premier League history.
So go on then, who do you think will go down as the better defender, Virgil van Dijk or Vincent Kompany?
Everton are reportedly already hoping to sign Jack Grealish from Manchester City permanently
Danny Jones
Everton FC are reportedly already considering signing Jack Grealish on a permanent deal after an impressive start to his spell on loan from Manchester City.
The former Aston Villa talisman has struggled to remain in the starting XI under Pep Guardiola since joining the club in 2021, but since arriving on Merseyside, he’s already been a difference-maker in every match for the Toffees thus far.
Grealish has not only registered four assists in just two starts for Everton but also won the very first player of the month award in the Premier League this season for his contributions.
Safe to say he’s fast made a big impact over in Liverpool – hence why it is now thought that manager David Moyes wants to make his transfer permanent.
Becoming just the 10th Toffee to ever win the accolade, the Birmingham-born creator is now thought to be the primary transfer target, despite the summer window having only recently closed.
He writes that despite the deal between Everton and Man City already including a £50 million option to buy next summer, that number is “not fixed and is more a consequence of accounting than a set price.”
The England international still has two years on his contract in the blue half of Manchester, but the previous valuation (which is half the amount City paid for him in a then record fee for a British player), so it is believed that he could be signed for an even better cut-price offer as his deal runs down.
Put it this way, it looks like the supporters would do just about anything to keep him at the Hill Dickinson.
Jack Grealish giving his shirt to an Everton fan after their brilliant win away at Wolves today.
Bascombe goes on to explain, however, that his salary considerations could be a significant obstacle. Grealish is estimated to be earning approximately £12m a year, which is almost certainly too rich for Everton’s blood.
Taking that into account, it’d be a case of whether or not the Brummy forward would be willing to accept a much lower wage to depart the Etihad Stadium for Everton long-term; alternatively, waiting for him to become a free agent in a few transfer windows’ time would also be an option.
What about you, Blues: would you like to see Jack Grealish stay and fight for his place under Guardiola, or would you understand/support him making his Everton permanent?
Interestingly, there could be yet more shuffling of the pack in the middle of the park for Pep, as a forgotten man is apparently going to be given another chance to revive his City career…
Kalvin Phillips is reportedly set to be reintegrated into the Manchester City squad
Danny Jones
Long-exiled Manchester City player Kalvin Phillips is reportedly on the verge of being reintegrated into Pep Guardiola’s squad this season.
The ex-Leeds United star, who signed for the Blues back in 2022, has still only made just 16 appearances for the club, but could now be eyeing up a potential renaissance.
Man City have made plenty of signings this year, but with a number of outgoings and several injuries in key positions, it looks like there could be an avenue for the one-time England international to fight his way back into the team.
As per Telegraph Sport‘s Mike McGrath, Kalvin Phillips is set to be reintroduced to City’s 25-man Premier League selection; the question is, can he make it into a first-team XI?
🚨 EXCLUSIVE: Kalvin Phillips has chance to resurrect career at the Etihad Stadium after failed loan spells with Ipswich and West Ham
According to McGrath, Phillips will be “given a chance to resurrect his career at the Etihad Stadium” with the meat and potatoes of the 2025/26 campaign still yet to get properly underway.
Now 29, the Yorkshireman is well and truly within the crucial ‘prime’ years as an athlete, and after such an extended period on the sidelines, he’ll be more motivated than anyone to get his career back on track.
The central defensive midfielder – who was formerly considered a key cog in the middle of the park for Leeds – has spent two loan spells away from the Etihad, but neither really worked out for the undeniably talented footballer.
Having joined West Ham for the latter portion of the 23/24 term and spending the last 12 months on loan at struggling Ipswich Town, his time at both clubs was pretty forgettable, punctuated by little more than a couple of unfortunate red cards and more time on the bench.
Speaking to Sky Sports fairly recently, he confessed that the last couple of years have been very difficult and was visibly emotional discussing his struggles since moving to Man City.
It’s also worth noting that Guardiola himself has admitted to feeling “so bad” for Kalvin Phillips’ situation – perhaps why he now looks like he could be given a second chance.
CDM-wise, Rodri and Nico González are considered the go-to options, but Stockport-born Rico Lewis and Mateo Kovačić have also been used in the role.
Once again, although Man City face somewhat of an injury crisis ahead of the Manchester derby this weekend, any prolonged absences could at least see an opportunity arise for the forgotten man.
What do you make of Kalvin Phillips’ chances of being restored to the Manchester City squad and maybe even putting himself back into national team contention ahead of the World Cup?
Danny Jones -
26th February 2024 
