There will be plenty of sports fans who will not like the idea of players from their team befriending a player from a rival team.

The reality is, though, that a lot of ultra-competitive, elite athletes will have a lot in common with each other and end up striking friendships up, irrespective of which club they are employed by.

George Best and Mike Summerbee were best friends when they were turning out for Manchester United and Manchester City respectively in the 1960s, while David de Gea and Sergio Aguero remained close throughout their time in Manchester too.

Two more close friends will battle it out at Anfield on Sunday when Virgil van Dijk and Liverpool take on Kevin De Bruyne and Manchester City.

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De Bruyne and Van Dijk's friendship will be put to one side for a couple of hours, but don't be surprised if the pair are holidaying together next summer — just as they have done for the past three years.

Both players speak Dutch and English — not that they would need to speak more than one common language in order to communicate — and their children attend the same school.

In an interview with Gary Neville on The Overlap in 2022, Van Dijk chose De Bruyne as the one player who he had not yet played with, who he wishes he would have had as a teammate.

“I think he’s unbelievable. If he would have played at Liverpool we would have gone even further than we already have," Van Dijk said. “I think he’s outstanding, good on the ball, pressing, scoring, he’s got everything as a modern-day midfielder and footballer in general. I think he’s an outstanding player.”

Last year, De Bruyne returned the praise, describing Van Dijk as a Rolls-Royce. "He's got everything," De Bruyne told Sky Sports. "I know him well: he's got right foot, left foot, speed, height, he's a leader. Thiago is also amazing, but I just think Virgil has got that little bit more."