Phil Thompson has described the decision to give the Liverpool captaincy to Virgil van Dijk as ‘the perfect call’ from Jurgen Klopp.
The Dutchman took over the role during the summer following the departure of Jordan Henderson for Saudi Arabia, and an article for the Liverpool Echo noted how – in tandem with vice-captain Trent Alexander-Arnold – the centre-back is driving a change in leadership style within the Reds’ squad.
The piece mentioned how the current skipper and his deputy ‘offer a more relaxed approach’ than their predecessors Henderson and James Milner, who were ‘famed for their no-nonsense, almost headmaster-like’ demeanour.
That change of tack is ‘understood to have led to a more serene atmosphere within the ranks’ at Anfield, with Van Dijk’s ‘calming presence’ helping him to ‘command respect without the need to be overly vocal or outspoken away from the pitch’.
That approach has met with approval by Thompson, who was Liverpool’s captain when they won the European Cup in 1981.
The 69-year-old told the Liverpool Echo: “When you raise your voice [occasionally], people jump and they listen and they know what you’re talking about. If you rant and rave all the time, it doesn’t get through. You’ve got to do it at given times and that is why I think he was the perfect call after Jordan left.”
The more relaxed approach under Van Dijk and Trent isn’t by any means a criticism of the leadership style of Henderson and Milner – indeed, those two would’ve been invaluable pillars of guidance for the current vice-captain when he was breaking through to the first team at Liverpool a few years ago.
While it took the 33-year-old’s out-of-the-blue transfer to Al Ettifaq to instigate a change in captaincy, rather than any intention by Klopp to take it off him and redistribute it, players can often appreciate hearing new voices dominate within the dressing room.
The Henderson-Milner axis led the squad for eight years, which is a long time to be tasked with carrying the roles of primary responsibility within a group.
It seems that Van Dijk and Trent have opted to go with a more sedate approach as captain and vice-captain at Liverpool, and the evidence of the season so far suggests that they’ve been justified in doing so.
Thompson is correct in saying that occasional sharp blasts from a leader command far greater attention than constant drill sergeant-esque bellowing which’d cause teammates to tune it out; and as a former Reds skipper himself, he’s perfectly placed to speak about the subject.
It definitely looks as if Klopp got it right with his choice of successors to Henderson and Milner over the summer.
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