You just can't mess with some families. If you do, well, good luck.
Virgil van Dijk seems to have learnt this lesson the hard way. The defender has been receiving waves of trolls and cyber attacks from fans over his comment on Cristiano Ronaldo during Monday's Ballon d'Or ceremony, with the Portuguese superstar's sister being the latest.
Liverpool's Van Dijk, who finished second behind Lionel Messi in the race for the coveted award, had kicked up a storm when he jokingly said Ronaldo was not a contender for the prize. After Cristiano Ronaldo had opted not to attend the award ceremony in France, a journalist asked Virgil if Ronaldo’s absence meant that he had one less rival to compete with. His response was a counter-question - "Was he a rival then...?"
The Dutchman's statement backfired instantly, attracting criticism from all quarters of the football world. However, the most scathing of them all was yet to come.
Cristiano Ronaldo's sister Katia Aveiro on Instagram wrote a direct reply to him, along with a photo of her little brother's famous scissor kick goal against Juventus in 2018.
Katia's every line sounds like a halberd meant to pierce Virgil's spirit and mores at the same time. Also, it is almost impossible to believe the 43-year-old is doing it for the first time, considering its accuracy and approach.
Katia begins her post by addressing Van Dijk as "Dear Virgil". (Don't get carried away, wait for it!)
"Cristiano Ronaldo has gone and has come back a thousand times from where you are heading now," she writes. (This is just the beginning!)
"You see, my dear Virgil, Cristiano Ronaldo was a three-time champion in the country where you have been playing for years and you still haven't got your hands on the trophy. (Oops!) Cristiano Ronaldo was even the best player and best scorer in the country where you play Virgil. By the way, he was even younger than you. (That should have hurt)"
"Then, dear Virgil, Cristiano Ronaldo went to other places and became the greatest player in the history of club football.
"He was at Real Madrid. Does that tell you anything? Because this club, with this Cristiano, even beat you in the Champions League final. (Burn!)
And yeah, of these Ballons d'Or, Ronaldo already has five."
She was in no hurry to finish a decided to have a dig at Virgil's international career as well. "How did it feel when Ronaldo and his teammates, crushed your 'Oranje' in a final. Was it hard?," she wrote reminding him of Ronaldo-captained Portugal defeating the Netherlands earlier this year in the UEFA Nations League final.
But wait, we are not done yet. The mother of two saves the best for the last.
"And, dear Virgil, in one of the least successful times of his career, Cristiano Ronaldo has won even more titles than you. Awesome, isn't it?"
"Now Virgil, you go and win titles that really matter and then we'll talk. When you have some, I mean the important ones, you might be able to sit at the table with Cristiano. Or, as they say in our land, it grows and appears!"
Van Dijk was one of four Liverpool players in the top 10, with Sadio Mane fourth, Mohamed Salah fifth and goalkeeper Alisson seventh. Liverpool is having a perfect season in England this season after European glory earlier this year. Cristiano, who won the prize last in 2017, is with defending Serie A winners Juventus.