Virgil van Dijk is back to making everything look easy, but it hasn’t been an easy road back, with the captain admitting he had to “get to know his knee again.”
Liverpool’s captain has started the season as one of the best performers, putting to rest any doubts about his ability to return to the top after a disappointing 2022/23 season.
Van Dijk has been open about his exhaustion and his difficult recovery from an ACL injury in 2020, which saw him fall far short of his world-class standards.
Since then, he’s faced criticism from all sides, but the Reds will be relieved that the Dutchman has “the feeling that I can do everything again.”
“My injury was very serious, so it’s not surprising that you have to get to know your knee again, so to speak,” Klopp told Algemeen Dagblad, according to Sport Witness.
“However, I no longer notice it.” I haven’t had to change much about my playing style, and I’m confident that I can do it all again.”
According to Squawka, Van Dijk has yet to be dribbled past in the Premier League, has not been dispossessed, and has not had an error lead to a goal.
He truly is making everything look easy, just as he did years ago, and rival fans are doing everything they can to find any flaw in his armour, just as they did back then.
It follows harsh criticism in England and his native Netherlands, and even he admits that the previous season was “mediocre” and “sometimes even bad.”
“I take some criticism seriously, but not all,” Van Dijk said. “I know when I’m playing well and when I’m not.
“Last season was just mediocre, at times downright bad.” We also struggled to find a good rhythm as a team in Liverpool. The Dutch team also performed poorly in the Nations League.
“I have given it a lot of thought and discussion in order to be able to turn that around.” That, I believe, worked. Since the summer, things have been going very well.”
Van Dijk’s responsibilities have shifted as a result of his increased responsibility as captain, but he sees it as a “incentive” for his overall game.
“Of course, I find it very beautiful and honorable,” he said of his captaincy. “There’s a lot involved, possibly even more than at the national team.”
“You bear a great deal of responsibility for the entire team, particularly the younger boys, as well as the club as a whole.”
“It has absolutely no negative impact on my game.” Not exactly: it’s more of a motivator.”
Leave a Reply