The newly-appointed Netherlands captain, Virgil van Dijk took to Instagram to express his delight at scoring his first goal for the national team, in the 3-0 win over Portugal on Monday night. Memphis Depay and Ryan Babel also scored on the night as Ronald Koeman picked up his first win as Holland manager.
Koeman endured a difficult outing on Friday as his team lost 1-0 to England but the Oranje bounced back in style, registering an emphatic 3-0 win over Portugal. Van Dijk led the team from the front, smashing home a half-volley at the stroke of half-time.
The Dutch defender then explained what the first goal for the national team means to him.
He wrote on Instagram: “Great time away with the national team. Really happy overall with the work we put in as a group during the international break capped off by a fantastic result last night against Portugal! What a feeling to score my first goal for my country too!”
“We knew that after the game against England we had to recover something,” Van Dijk was quoted by the Independent. “That we make three goals is fantastic. Even though we had a hard time in the second half. But that we can play football well is clear.”
It was great to watch Van Dijk come up with a commanding performance for the Netherlands. The goal is good for him but his overall defending was solid and that is more important than the goal scored.
Since joining Liverpool from Southampton in January, Van Dijk, after a fair share of problems, has done very well. Let’s hope he continues performing at the highest level, week in and week out for Liverpool.
