Barcelona star Gerard Pique has sent a warning message to Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk over his bid to claim this year's Ballon d'Or.
The Dutchman was crowned UEFA Men's Player of the Year last night, beating Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to the gong in a star-studded ceremony in Monaco.
And as a result, the former Southampton man is now favourite to claim this year's award in December, after a stellar campaign that saw the defender help his side claim the Champions League and take them to within a point of claiming the Premier League title.
But Pique, who was nominated for the award back in 2012, believes Van Dijk is more than deserving of his place among the world's elite, but believes the award is made for forward players to win.
“I always said that for me, if you have to vote for the best player of them all, you have to vote for Lionel Messi,” the centre-back told the PokerStars European Poker Tour in Barcelona .
”For the last 10 years he has been by far the best player in the world, but it’s fair enough that Van Dijk has done a great season and he should be there fighting for it.
”It’s not easy. This game is made for strikers. When they score they are the stars and when they don’t score, normally nothing happens.
”For keepers and defenders, it’s more difficult. When you do a good job it’s difficult for people to recognise you, but when you make a mistake you’re everywhere. Normally strikers will win it.”
