Liverpool target Jude Bellingham has named Reds star Virgil van Dijk in his Team of the Year - and explained why another of Jurgen Klopp's defenders narrowly missed out.
Bellingham was rewarded by EA Sports for his incredible 2022, which saw him elevate his reputation as one of the world's top young stars and impress at the World Cup with England.
He was named in the official Team of the Year, and his 95 card was available in FIFA 23 Ultimate Team packs for a limited period earlier this week. It will return to packs on Friday, along with the full team.
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Van Dijk was also named in the team, while Real Madrid stars Thibaut Courtois, Eder Militao, Luka Modric and Karim Benzema were selected.
PSG trio Achraf Hakimi, Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi, who performed heroics for club and country in 2022, are also involved. At left-back is AC Milan and France's Theo Hernandez, whilst Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne completes the team.
As part of EA's TOTY campaign, Borussia Dortmund star Bellingham - who is attracting keen interest from Liverpool - was asked to pick his own XI.
Liverpool target Bellingham picks FIFA 23 TOTY
In the video posted on Dortmund's channel, Bellingham opted for eight of the same players that EA picked, with Courtois, Hakimi, Militao, Modric, De Bruyne, Messi and Mbappe all making the cut.
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He also selected Liverpool star Van Dijk, simply describing the Dutchman as 'too good' when prompted on why he chose him.
The 19-year-old revealed he had a choice of three players at right-back, between Hakimi, Kyle Walker and Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Explaining why the Reds' number 66 missed out, he said: "I'm not picking between the English guys. I'm going to go with Hakimi because I'm not picking between Trent and Walks.
"I will take Hakimi, because he was amazing at the World Cup and I won't get killed for picking him."
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In the other three positions, Bellingham opted for City duo Erling Haaland and Joao Cancelo over Benzema and Hernandez. He also didn't choose himself, picking Real star Federico Valverde instead.
His full Team of the Year is as follows:
- Thibaut Courtois (Real Madrid)
- Achraf Hakimi (PSG)
- Eder Militao (Real Madrid)
- Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
- Joao Cancelo (Manchester City)
- Luka Modric (Real Madrid)
- Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)
- Federico Valverde (Real Madrid)
- Lionel Messi (PSG)
- Erling Haaland (Manchester City)
- Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
Topics: Jude Bellingham, Liverpool, Virgil Van Dijk, Premier League, FIFA 23, Team Of The Year
Ryan Smart