Virgil van Dijk picks between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo

Virgil van Dijk has answered the question over who is better between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Both players are big in the news at the moment after leaving their clubs in the summer to embark on new journeys.

Ronaldo returned to his old club Manchester United from Juventus in an emotional transfer with the 36-year-old hitting the ground running.

Whereas Messi called an end to his time at Barcelona - the team he has spent his entire professional career - after financial problems at the Nou Camp prevented him from renewing his contract.

Paris Saint-Germain picked up the Argentine, where he scored his first goal last week in a 2-0 win over Manchester City in the Champions League.

Lionel Messi joined PSG in the summer from Barcelona ( Image:

REUTERS)

The two have a plethora of prizes between them, including 11 Ballon d'Ors, yet many have debated over who is better player.

Many agree that the pair are on another planet in terms of ability and the fact that they are tussling it out at the same time has only benefitted football over the years.

Van Dijk knows a bit about both having played against the two forwards for Liverpool and the Netherlands but picked who was the toughest opponent between them.

When asked who gave him the roughest ride, the Reds star said: "I would say Lionel Messi, he's still the best football player in the world.

"Him and Cristiano [Ronaldo] have been doing unreal numbers in the last decades and it's incredible what they have achieved.

"But in this case I will choose Messi, we had a tough night at Barcelona [in 2019]."

Cristiano Ronaldo signed for Manchester United from Juventus ( Image:

REUTERS)

Over the years, Van Dijk has taken on some of the biggest and best strikers in the world and has usually came out on top.

But the 30-year-old singled out one up and coming talent that many already know the talent of.

He added: "[Erling] Haaland is also a special striker, he's strong, he's quick. He's got all the attributes to make a defender's life very, very difficult.

Who is the best, Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo? Comment below.

"The first time was when he was at Salzburg he scored at Anfield. He was very quick, direct.

"Bit like how Jamie Vardy plays, but Haaland is a bit stronger than Vardy."

Liverpool took on City in the Premier League in an entertaining clash at Anfield on Sunday with both sides vying for the title at the end of the season.

It ended in an enthralling 2-2 draw that saw goals from Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, Phil Foden and Kevin de Bruyne.