Manchester United legend Nemanja Vidic would not swap the club’s current defenders for Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk.
The 27-year-old is leading the Reds’ title charge and they will reclaim top spot in the Premier League if they win or draw against United on Sunday, live on talkSPORT.
He has been in top form since becoming the world’s most expensive defender in a £75million deal from Southampton 13 months.
However, Vidic insists he would pick the likes of Chris Smalling and Jones over Van Dijk, who is expected to return to the starting 11 at Old Trafford after missing Liverpool’s Champions League last-16 first leg clash with Bayern Munich through suspension.
Vidic, who won five Premier League titles with United between 2006 and 2014, told Omnisport: “I think [Victor Lindelof] had a difficult time in the beginning.
“Well done to him to come back. It’s not easy, especially playing for Man United, big club, to not start that well and have criticism from the media.
“To come back from that and now perform well, it shows some character as well, which is important if you want to play for Man United.
“He has some quality definitely. He has done really well. I think Phil Jones did well in the recent games he played, Chris Smalling is a good defender, [Eric] Bailly as well. I think we have four solid defenders and with the right match I think they can perform to the best of their capabilities.
“Overall, I said even before when they didn’t have great games, if you look at the other teams, I would not have any defenders of Liverpool or Chelsea, I don’t think they have better defenders than we have.
“I think now the team is playing better, they have more confidence and there will come even better matches from them.”
Vidic also believes Van Dijk is receiving more praise from pundits than United’s defenders due to Liverpool’s league position.
The 37-year-old added: “I think he’s doing a great job – he’s strong physically, he’s fast, he’s a presence on the pitch.
“He’s a great defender, top defender, but I’m saying when teams are doing well, everyone gets recognition.
“I know that because I played for Man United and when you’re doing well, when you’re scoring goals, [getting] a few clean sheets, straight away people start talking about how good you are.
“And maybe you play some good matches when the team lost but people didn’t recognise that. I think when you start winning, when you start having clean sheets, you’re getting more recognition.
“I think that’s why I like to believe that we have good defenders [at United] and I think [the form] has been better coming from our defenders and the whole team.”