England will face a defender worthy of the Ballon d’Or when they face Virgil van Dijk and the Netherlands in tonight’s semi-final, according to his former captain Jose Fonte.
Fonte, who came off the bench in Porto last on Wednesday as Cristiano Ronaldo scored a stunning hat-trick to book Portugal a place in Sunday’s final, played alongside Van Dijk at Southampton where the Dutchman grew into the £75million defender snapped up by Liverpool last season.
And the former Saints and West Ham man has tipped his old defensive partner to add a Ballon d’Or to his Champions League medal and PFA Player of the Year award.
“I think he has a shot to be honest,” Fonte told Standard Sport. “He was named Premier League player of the year, winning the Champions League, why not?
“We always give it to the strikers because they score goals and everything but it is about time a defender gets one, no?”
Fonte and Van Dijk formed a solid partnership under now Netherlands manager Ronald Koeman, taking Southampton to a sixth place finish in the Premier League in 2016, and the Portuguese defender knew then he was playing alongside someone special.
“Without a doubt [you knew he would be this good],” Fonte said.
“I had many conversations with my international teammates, I remember telling them 'listen, this guy I am sure he will be one of the best defenders in the world'.
“It is obvious, everyone could see the pace he had, how strong he is - wins every duel. It was just about improving his positioning, and that is what he did when he came to Southampton, he stopped coming out with the ball too much, trying to dribble too much, playing simple.”
“Did I teach him that? Ah! Listen, I have a little bit of credit but the main thing is him, he is an amazing talent.”
No player has taken on the Dutchman and succeeded in his last 64 appearances, England must try tonight in Guimaraes, and while it is a difficult task Fonte knows someone will have to beat him soon.
“It is not easy, but no one is unbeatable. It is an incredible stat, isn't it? If there is someone, Cristiano is one of them.”
