Quick, composed and physically dominant - Virgil van Dijk is the defender who has it all. But from washing dishes while he tried to secure his first professional contract to facing rejection and serious illness, it didn’t always seem as if Virgil was going to make it to the top.

This is the inspiring story of how a boy from Breda used his determination and self-belief to become one of the greatest defenders in the world.

This biography is one of the titles in Ransom’s Tales from the Pitch series. These books offers a fresh take on the familiar football biography format

Each of these fast-moving reads focuses on one football superstar, some players who are still to reach the summit of their career, and others who are the already at the top of their game. These are exhilarating reads about players from all walks of life. Many have faced failure, injury and rejection, to ultimately make their dreams come true and have inspirational stories.

So meet the footballers behind the iconic tackles and goals, and find out what makes each of these players so special.