Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has labelled Aymeric Laporte as the "best left-sided centre-back" in world football.
Laporte has been a revelation since moving to the Etihad Stadium 18 months ago and already has back-to-back Premier League titles to his name.
The 25-year-old was singled out for praise by Guardiola after he earned a recall to the French national team following an extended period out of Didier Deschamps' squad.
Speaking during his pre-match press conference ahead of City's clash against Brighton this weekend, Guardiola said: "For me, it’s a mistake when I said one of the best because [Laporte] is the best left-sided centre back at the moment.
"I am incredibly grateful to Deschamps and so happy for him because he deserves it.
"All of us are so happy for him because he was looking for the call for a long time."
Laporte's stock has undoubtedly soared since his big-money move - but it is questionable whether he is the best left-sided defender in England, let alone the world.
Virgil van Dijk lines up on the left of Liverpool's back four.
Over the last 12 months, it's clear that Van Dijk and Laporte have been the Premier League's leading centre-backs as both fight at the top of the table for the Premier League title.
The pair were named next to each other in the last season's PFA Team of the Season after outstanding performances which saw their teams amass a combined 195 points.
However, it appears Guardiola ranks Laporte ahead of the Reds' dominant Dutch defender, which has caused a fair bit of debate on social media.
Several City fans on Twitter insist that the boss meant "left-footed" centre-back, which would perhaps make more sense.
But here a few tweets from Reds supporters suggesting Van Dijk may have a strong case, if Guardiola genuinely did mean left-sided central defender:
Van Dijk was crowned UEFA Men's Player of the Year yesterday after he guided Liverpool to a sixth European Cup triumph.
The Dutch captain was also named as last season's PFA Player of the Year, despite Laporte and City pipping Liverpool to the title.
