Virgil van Dijk has been arguably Southampton’s Player of the Season so far this term.
The 25-year-old has formed a strong partnership with Jose Fonte at the heart of the Saints defence over the course of the last 15 months, ever since making the move south of the border from Celtic, and captained the side in the Europa League this season.
The Netherlands international even scored in the famous 2-1 win against Inter Milan at St Mary’s earlier this month, providing the impetus the team needed to turn the match around.
Earlier in the campaign, the Dutchman was also a major part of the run that saw Claude Puel’s side keep six consecutive clean sheets.
With Gerard Pique and Jeremy Mathieu not getting any younger and doubts over Javier Mascherano in that position, Barcelona could be looking for a new centre-back sooner rather than later.
Here are three reasons why Van Dijk is good enough to play for the La Liga giants in the future.
Possession
One of Van Dijk’s best attributes is his passing ability – whether its a short pass out of defence or a raking forward ball to the wings.
It is a modern-day requirement for centre-backs to be good on the ball and the Dutchman will certainly have impressed any watching scouts with his performances since the start of last season – especially when he goes on marauding runs forward.
Of course, Barcelona famously like their players to be comfortable on the ball and in that respect, the centre-back would fit in perfectly to their team.
Aerial presence
As well as his ability on the ball, Van Dijk is a colossus in the air and uses his 6ft 4” frame to win headers in defence every week.
In fact, the Dutchman has won the most aerial duels (4.4) per match of any player to have appeared in 10 or more Premier League matches this season.
That too should appeal to Barcelona, who can sometimes be bullied in defence and particularly at set pieces.
Maturity
Despite only being in his mid-twenties, Van Dijk has shown a great maturity and calmness since he joined Southampton from Celtic in the summer of 2015.
Saints boss Claude Puel has obviously been impressed after naming him as captain on a number of occasions this term, while also saying that he can become one of the best defenders in world football.
The Dutch defender’s personality traits suggest a switch to the Camp Nou would be taken in his stride.