Babel will face his compatriot at Craven Cottage on Sunday as Fulham aim to give themselves a glimmer of hope in the survival battle and dent Liverpool’s title bid.
The Dutchman played at Anfield between 2007 and 2011 after joining from Ajax for £11.5m as a highly-rated 20-year-old.
Now 32, Babel hooked up with Fulham on a short-term contract in January and has played eight Premier League games for the Cottagers, scoring once.
The ex-Besiktas man lines up alongside Van Dijk for Holland – and thinks he knows a way to exploit the player many believe to be the world’s best centre-back.
“Virgil has definitely developed over the past few years,” Babel told The Times. “I think he can get better by 30 per cent. I still feel he plays on 70 per cent. He can do much more. He can be fast if he wants.
“He does have a weakness, I don’t want to say what it is. I don’t think in the Premier League anyone has made that aware yet.”
In the same interview, Babel also admitted regret at the speed of his Liverpool departure which didn’t allow him to bid farewell to Reds.
“I left Liverpool and people had to find out through the press, there was no goodbye, not even to my team-mates,” he said. “I’m positive about getting applause on Sunday.”