Liverpool centre-back Virgil van Dijk wins Defender of the Season award

By Barney Corkhill, Editor | 30 May 2019

Liverpool claim the top three places in the voting for Sports Mole's Defender of the Season award, with Virgil van Dijk the clear winner.

Liverpool centre-back Virgil van Dijk has been named Sports Mole's defender of the season with more than three-quarters of the votes in the 2018-19 Reader Awards.

The Dutchman's imperious presence was a major reason behind Liverpool's title challenge, which saw them finish on 97 points but still miss out on the title to Manchester City.

Van Dijk's form throughout the campaign earned him the PFA Players' Player of the Year Award, and our readers have now voted him as their clear choice for the best defender in the league too.

Indeed, all three of the best defenders were Liverpool players, with Van Dijk's 76.8% of the votes being followed by full-backs Trent Alexander-Arnold (9.6%) and Andrew Robertson (4.8%).

The duo combined for 23 top-flight assists this season, including 12 from Alexander-Arnold which saw him break the record for most assists by a defender in a single Premier League campaign.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka's breakthrough campaign at Crystal Palace saw him garner 4% of the votes, while Man City's Aymeric Laporte and Matt Doherty of Wolverhampton Wanderers earned 2.4% apiece.