BBC sport pundit, Stephen Kelly has claimed that star Liverpool, Virgil van Dijk looks vulnerable right now, after the Spurs game yesterday.
While speaking on the Football Daily Podcast, Kelly spoke about the amazing spectacle at Anfield yesterday. It felt as if the Reds had put the game to bed after scoring 3 goals in the first 20 minutes. A strike from Curtis Jones, Jota, and Salah seemed enough as Tottenham looked dead and buried.
However, a strike from the Spurs’ star man, Kane, before halftime looked like a consolation. After the break, the North Londoners came out to make a statement.
Son Heung-min’s goal in the 77th minute set up a frantic final quarter of the game. However, it was the ex-Evertonian who came on in the 84th minute to score an equalizer for what seemed like a stalemate, in the 93rd minute. But it was the Portuguese with the winning goal in the 94th minute after he capitalized on a Lucas Moura error and gave the Reds all 3 points.
Virgil van Dijk criticized for his defending
Even though the Reds won, there is no denying that the backline looked shaky all along. The main criticism was directed towards the 2019 PFA Player of the Year, Virgil van Dijk.
The Dutch player went down as Perisic dribbled easily past him. The clip was a center to many trolls over the internet as well. This even led to the first Spurs’ goal.
However, it has not been just the number 4, the entire backline has been shaky the whole season. It was somewhat sloppy to concede 3 goals after dominating the game for such a long time.
Assessing the game, Kelly said that the gameplay was poor from both sides.
“Apart from the unbelievable chances, the defending at times if you actually analyse it as a coach, some of the defending was atrocious.
It was so bad from both sides, it really was. In the second half, Liverpool looked so vulnerable.
[Virgil] Van Dijk, he’s had an off season, and maybe he can get back to what he was.
But, when he’s chasing down [Ivan] Perisic and Perisic chops inside and he slips over, I’m like, Van Dijk would have got there and just eaten him alive and pushed him into the corner and shown him away, and Perisic would have turned away and sort of run back. That’s the way he was.
But there’s a vulnerability to him now that wasn’t there before and Liverpool have that, but they still came away winners with Moura giving that chance away.”
A season to forget for Liverpool and the Dutch defender
Van Dijk was also called ‘overrated’ by Jason Cundy previously. And also he has failed to recapture the form that made him the best centre-back in the world.
Even though the criticism is a bit harsh, it is true in a way. However, the Ballon d’Or runner-up in 2019 is having a tough season with the Reds.
Currently, the Reds are on their course to capture a top 4 spot to secure a UCL qualification the next season. Meanwhile, it is yet to be seen now whether they could achieve the feat.
I’m a football enthusiast and an avid writer and someone who lives by the Bill Shankly quote, on a day to day basis.
