WHEN Virgil Van Dijk last faced Barcelona he was on the receiving end of a Champions League hammering.
Van Dijk was part of a Celtic team battered into submission in a 6-1 group stage rout at the Nou Camp in December 2013.
Fresh from being named PFA Player of the Year, the Dutchman returns to the scene of that thumping in tonight’s semi-final on a mission to edge Liverpool closer to a second successive final in Europe’s premier competition.
Joe Ledley was a team-mate of Van Dijk on that sorry night in Spain and the Welshman recalled that the impressive centre-back did his best to keep the scoreline down.
Ledley told SunSport: “It would have been more without him!
“We played Barcelona a few times at that period. We pushed them all the way before Jordi Alba scored to make it 2-1 and then beat them at home.
“But in the 6-1, we weren’t at it at all. Virgil, and credit to him, he was brilliant. It could have been a lot more without him.”
Neymar cut Van Dijk and Celtic apart with a hat-trick but the Brazil forward is now with Paris Saint Germain.
Instead, Liverpool’s challenge will be to another pair of South Americans quiet in Lionel Messi and ex-Reds striker Luis Suarez.
Ledley believes Van Dijk and Co will have their work cut out in the semi-final, first leg but is full of admiration for the Dutch centre-back, who has become one of the best defenders in the world.
Ex-Cardiff and Crystal Palace midfielder Ledley, who has been without a club since he cancelled his Derby contract in January, added: “Messi drifts in and out of games and you don’t see him at times.
“When you do see him you are struggling.
“He can change a game whenever he wants. It will be difficult for Liverpool because Barcelona are a fantastic team.
“They have had a fantastic season and hopefully they can continue it.
“But I’ve not been surprised by the rise of Virgil at all. We could see straight away from when he signed at Celtic how good he was.
“He was so calm and had everything. He could hit shots, win headers, he’s strong, quick and you could see back then how good of a player he was going to be.
“People disrespect Scottish football and say he should be doing that in that division but he was waiting for the opportunity and Southampton came in.
“I was surprised he went under the radar and other clubs didn’t snap him up as £10million was a steal.
“He’s quietly got on with his job but you could see the ability he had.
“It was great to play alongside him, he was brilliant for Celtic and he’s gone on from strength to strength every season since.
“He’s still young and Liverpool is a big club to play for but he’s gone in there and done his job.
“He’s got the experience of playing for Celtic and that has helped him. He’s a fantastic player.”
Joe Ledley was speaking at a McDonald’s Fun Football Centre. The Fun Football programme is designed to introduce children to football and you can register for a session at www.mcdonalds.co.uk/funfootball
