Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk was criticized on Sunday after the Reds’ 3-1 Premier League defeat by Arsenal. The 32-year-old tangled with Alisson Becker at a crucial moment in the game, with the experienced duo going over the wire to allow Gabriel Martinelli to put Arsenal 2-1 up with 23 minutes remaining.
Van Dijk accepted responsibility for the post-match blunder that cost Liverpool a crucial point in the title race against Manchester City as well as Arsenal. “I take full responsibility for the 2-1 goal,” he told Sky Sports. “But this is a big turning point in the game. I should have done better and made better decisions there.
It hurts me and the rest of the team. “I had to give the green light and then I made the wrong decision at the moment and unfortunately that happens sometimes in football, but being sick doesn’t change anything.”It was a day to forget for Jurgen Klopp’s men, who ended the game with 10 men after Ibrahima Konate was shown two yellow cards. According to Opta, Liverpool also received an all-time high of 3.52 xG (expected goals).Former Arsenal striker Ian Wright analyzed the match on Monday’s Wrighty’s House podcast, saying Van Dijk could have done better if Leandro Trossard had scored the Gunners’ third goal in stoppage time.
“I thought Van Dijk would come earlier,” said the former striker.”You don’t really see people going to Van Dijk, playing with him, beating him and scoring goals. I think he thought he couldn’t beat Alisson because the bigger he was, the better he was.“I think we had to cover him and the bullets came from him because he didn’t shoot back.
I’ve seen it from Virgil for a while and it’s Ryder and Ryder.Van Dijk sparked curiosity last week when Jurgen Klopp was asked about his future following his departure from the club at the end of the season.The Dutchman admitted he would like to see Klopp’s Liverpool move on, but there are no guarantees he will be there to see it. Van Dijk is out of contract in the summer of 2025 and it remains to be seen how United’s new hierarchy will affect him.