Virgil van Dijk performed so perfectly in every game he played with Liverpool. One of his newest heroic actions is when he managed to block the attack of two Tottenham Hotspurs’ players. At that time, the score still drew 1-1. Liverpool scored through Roberto Firmino while Tottenham equalized it through Lucas Moura.
About six minutes before the game was over, Tottenham had a golden opportunity to turn things around. Moussa Sissoko was running with Son Heung Min meanwhile Virgil van Dijk blocked both of them from Alisson’s goal.
All fans were anxious. They thought they were about to lose. However, Van Dijk was able to stand tall to maintain Liverpool’s dream.
After not hastily taking the ball and continuing to watch the opponent’s movements, van Dijk finally pounced on the ball at Sissoko’s feet after the Tottenham’s player shifted the ball into his weak leg. Seeing van Dijk stretching his legs and legs to get the ball, Sissoko panicked so that he hurriedly took off his kick with his weak legs.
As a result, the ball kicked and soared high above the goal.
His way of defense was somewhat extraordinary because van Dijk was able to stop the golden opportunity owned by Spurs without doing hard tackles.
When the season was almost over, Liverpool was brought in with exorbitant prices. This let van Dijk be able to prove his quality and become the world’s best defender at that time. Even the statistical records showed that van Dijk was the only defender in the English Premier League that any player could not pass.
Thus, it is not surprising if this Dutchman became a strong candidate for the Premier League’s best player award.
The question is, how can Virgil van Dijk be one of the best defenders in the world?
Since starting his junior career, van Dijk has become the strongest physical player. He began his career as a right-back before finally establishing his position as a central defender. Having suffered a knee injury, van Dijk immediately recovered and made an impressive debut.
Initially, van Dijk was often in unfit conditions. But slowly, he began again his training regularly to continue building his perfect conditions as a footballer. At the age of just 19 years old, van Dijk even received a call to join the senior national team.
Those experiences were certainly very helpful for his development. He began to get used to performing perfectly with his mental development. The Dutch coach’s decision to call van Dijk at that time had a tremendous effect on him.
After being physically and mentally forged, van Dijk started a new habit to go to the gym regularly. He did it to get perfect physical strength. His hard work, in fact, was able to form van Dijk into a much stronger player.
After performing superbly with Groningen, van Dijk then moved to Celtic. It didn’t take long for Celtic to recognize van Dijk’s ability. They immediately put the Dutchman into the main team.
With Celtic, van Dijk continued to grow into a spectacular defender. He began to focus on technical training and sharpening his kick skills well. The exercise made a good result as van Dijk was not only good at defending, but he was also good at making long passes.
Moreover, the few years he spent at Celtic continued to shape him into a player who was confident, able to read matches and to have charisma on the field.
Until right in 2015, van Dijk officially anchored in the most ferocious competition in the whole world. He landed at St Mary’s stadium to join Southampton. Had been paid for 13 million euros, Southampton gave the opportunity for van Dijk to feel the atmosphere of the Premier League.
Under the care of Ronald Koeman, van Dijk was able to show an impressive game. Slowly, he became a defender who was not afraid of anything. At that time, van Dijk succeeded in surprising many parties because he immediately appeared extraordinary when he first set foot in the State of Queen Elizabeth.
Located at Southampton, van Dijk really utilized team facilities. He did not immediately stop when the training was over and tried some of the things he had just met in England. His habit slowly improved his quality. Believe it or not, van Dijk was an alert and more responsible player.
After three years at Southampton, van Dijk was recruited by Liverpool at a cost of 75 million euros. Because he had undergone such a remarkable process and training, Liverpool became a lucky team. They lived to enjoy the quality that van Dijk had.
He appeared perfectly in a game that was difficult to explain. He gave extraordinary effects and often became the savior of the Reds in certain moments. The arrival of van Dijk became an extraordinary transformation in the Liverpool camp. They are no longer a team with weak defenses. Liverpool became a strong candidate to win the English League trophy with all the perfection in various lines.
Seeing van Dijk’s outstanding contribution and game, will he become a Liverpool legend?
