If anyone is looking for one piece of footage to show to FSG in an attempt to hasten the agreement of a new contract for Virgil van Dijk, it may well have emerged last night.
The 33-year-old is among three crucial players at Liverpool whose deals expire in six months’ time, with speculation rife as to whether or not he, Mo Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold will still be at Anfield next season.
There’s an increasing confidence among many Reds fans that the captain will extend his stay at the club, with reports from Spain even suggesting that it’s already been agreed, and one passage of play from the Boxing Day win over Leicester encapsulates why the Dutchman holds the armband for LFC.
With Liverpool 2-1 to the good in the 59th minute – having battled back from the concession of an early Jordan Ayew goal – Van Dijk was seen ushering teammates forward in anticipation of Foxes goalkeeper Jakub Stolarczyk playing the ball short.
That duly happened, and while Harry Winks managed to evade the close attention of the Reds captain, our number 4 then sprinted back to dispossess an unsuspecting Boubakary Soumaré with an immaculately timed interception, having been a good 10 yards away from the Leicester midfielder when the ball was played to him.
If you’re looking for a clip to define ‘leading by example’, this is it. The desire and determination from Van Dijk to win the ball back is something that any young player – indeed, any footballer full stop – should be striving to emulate.
To say the least, he’d have been unfancied to dispossess Soumaré in that instance, but the Liverpool captain had only one thing on his mind, and he executed it to perfection.
It’s the kind of leadership that the club should be moving heaven and earth to maintain. It’s essential that the 33-year-old is retained by FSG, and for his contract situation to be resolved soon so that any fears over losing him on a free transfer are dispelled once and for all.
You can view the clip of Van Dijk dispossessing Soumaré below, via @tasauo55 on X:
— follow @Bbebo_55 (@tasauo55) December 26, 2024
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