“He was targeted”- van Dijk opens up on opposition attackers avoiding him in games

Liverpool superstar Virgil van Dijk opens up on being seen as an imperious opponent

According to BT Sport (h/t The Liverpool Echo), Liverpool superstar Virgil van Dijk has opened up on the respect afforded to him by opposition strikers on the field in an interview with Rio Ferdinand.

The Dutchman is the dominant centre-piece of the Reds backline and has proven to be a player worthy of being called the best defender in the world. He has come back stronger from his ACL injury and continues to impress on a weekly basis.

At 30, Van Dijk is at the peak of his powers and his reputation appears to precede him. Of late it has become noticeable that several opposition attackers choose to back down rather than go up against the Liverpool ace.

Speaking in the interview, Van Dijk opened up on the fact that of late it has become a habit for opponents to target his defensive partner in games. He pointed to the game against Everton where the Toffees chose to go up against Joel Matip.

“We played against Everton at the weekend and I felt after the game that I didn’t have many challenges and I looked at Joel Matip on the right and he was targeted.”

Van Dijk admits that he does not mind being too uninvolved as long as the team continues to thrive. Having a defender whose talent lives up to his reputation is certainly a huge boost for Jurgen Klopp and co.

“If we win, keep a clean sheet and I didn’t have too much to do then happy days and we can recover and go again.”

It was not just Everton who struggled to muster the courage to beat Van Dijk. Inter Milan’s Lautaro Martinez and Manchester City’s Raheem Sterling both showed clear signs of hesitation when they were one on one against the Dutchman in the past few weeks.

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Thankfully for Liverpool, Van Dijk has reliable options alongside him in Joel Matip, Ibrahima Konate and Joe Gomez. All three players are extremely capable defenders and can hold their own against the best. It is certainly a good time to be a Reds supporter.

Gone are the days when fans hesitated to show complete trust in our backline- one that housed players such as Dejan Lovren and Martin Skrtel. van Dijk has certainly changed the landscape at LFC and is arguably the most important signing Klopp has made since his move to Merseyside.