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“It was a great night – not just for Liverpool fans but I think it was a great night for football because how well Liverpool had done in the season, I thought they deserved to win it,” Coady said of the Champions League final.

“Tottenham are a brilliant team, a fantastic team. As a football fan it probably wasn’t the best of finals. But I think they deserved it after the season they had.”

On facing his former side, he continued: “Anybody would tell you the same, not just Liverpool fans; the way they did it and how they played, they deserved to win the league.

“I just think City are an incredible football club – they are a fantastic team with brilliant footballers and a brilliant manager. The way Liverpool went about it and how they did it, they deserved to win the league.

“I think that’s why everybody is happy that they won the Champions League, because they deserved something from the season.”

Coady also directed praise towards Van Dijk, saying: “Everybody realises how good he is as a footballer, what he has done for Liverpool in the last couple of years and how he has approached the football club and improved the defence and the whole team.

“The best thing about him is he is always in control of what he is doing, he is in control of an attacker, he is in control of how to defend a one-v-one. I remember when Son was running at him in the Champions League final, you always knew he was in control of what he was doing and he ended up making a tackle in the end – which he has done for the majority of the season.

“The way he has changed Liverpool has been brilliant to see.”