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Virgil van Dijk is one of the best defenders of his generation. The Dutchman has won it all in English football and he has often done so without even breaking a sweat. But that doesn't mean that he's breezed through his time at Liverpool without squaring off against some incredibly difficult opponents.

The Premier League took a breath of anticipation when Erling Haaland and Van Dijk found themselves one-on-one at Anfield not so long ago in a battle that ended with the Norwegian's wayward shot. Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo has never even scored against the towering Liverpool captain and many others have ended afternoons to forget in his ruthless grasp.

Endless players have endured their toughest games against Van Dijk and that includes Manchester United's Marcus Rashford, who is now on loan at Barcelona. The England international name-dropped his former Premier League rival when asked about the most difficult defender he's faced.

Whilst so many have struggled to leave their mark against Van Dijk, however, the same can't be said for Lionel Messi. When an immovable object met an unstoppable force, Van Dijk may have come away with a shock victory courtesy of Liverpool's dramatic Champions League comeback, but Messi still had his moment at the Nou Camp - scoring twice.

The fact that one of this generation's greatest defenders could not keep Messi quiet sums up just how other-wordly the Argentine icon is, more than it sums up Van Dijk's own shortcomings on a difficult evening. But the Dutchman, to his credit, was not fooled twice by Messi's magic and sent him crashing out of the Champions League in historic fashion in the second leg.

That Nou Camp thrashing courtesy of Messi will be one that Van Dijk remembers even to this day, but it wasn't enough to make the Barcelona legend his toughest opponent. Instead, the central defender dropped an unexpected name.

Van Dijk names "annoying" Giroud as toughest opponent

Speaking to Gary Neville on The Overlap, Van Dijk named Olivier Giroud as his toughest opponent despite having squared off against the likes of Messi, Ronaldo and Haaland.

The Liverpool captain looked back on the Frenchman's knack for a goal against the Reds before labeling him an "annoying" striker to play against.

Although Messi seems the obvious choice, the fact that Giroud has scored three goals in five games against Van Dijk throughout his career makes him a worthy candidate for his toughest opponent.