from now on Super Sunday Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk sat down with Gary Neville for an extensive interview during the match against Manchester City.
The reigning Premier League champions have had a difficult season and are two points adrift of the top four heading into this weekend’s round of fixtures.
That puts them eight points behind second-placed Manchester City and 14 behind league leaders Arsenal.
Pep Guardiola’s side won 3-0 against Liverpool last November, but United have won their last two games 10-1 and will be boosted in confidence ahead of Sunday’s clash at Anfield.
Van Dijk spoke about the changes to United’s form this season, the importance of Champions League football and more. sky sports Expert Neville…
Van Dijk’s reasons for Liverpool’s form this season
“You can’t just apply it to a specific point.
“Transitions, intensity, decision-making. Sometimes it’s luck, because that’s part of the game. It can go the way you want it to go, or it can go the other way. “For the first five games of the season we were supposed to be on the right side and after that there were games where we weren’t on the right side.
“This is a process we have to go through individually as players, but it is also a process we have to go through as a team.
“It (the intensity) is playing every three or four days, Champions League football, traveling, the physical demands but also the mental aspect.
“It’s a game where there are 11 players on the pitch, but we have 14 or 15 people in total to win the game and everyone is doing certain things in a certain way. I’m trying to help them all, because I want the best for the club and the players.
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“This is a process we have to go through and it is difficult to accept because there is no consistency.
“Personally, it hurt to be on a losing side. I haven’t been like that very often in my Liverpool career. They’ve been a consistent side for the past few years and now we’re in a position where we’re playing well and then coming down, so we have to accept that, improve and work together.
“Some of the games, the demands and the way teams play against us make us adapt a little bit in certain areas, but for the most part we try to have the same or better possession than the way the opposition presses.
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“But sometimes we couldn’t do that for more than 90 minutes and that was a very big problem, especially early in the season.”
Asked whether he addresses the players who come into the club and the demands placed on them to play for Liverpool, Van Dijk said: “That’s obviously a part of it, but even for the players who have been here, being a (Premier League) champion is something you have to deal with.”
“The pressure that comes with that is not as easy as everyone thinks. It’s very difficult to retain the title anyway. I couldn’t do it last time I was champion, and unfortunately I can’t do it this year either.”
‘We 100% need Champions League football’
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Following Arne Slot’s comments that playing good football is more important than trophies, Jamie O’Hara has claimed Liverpool are failing to achieve both and said the manager should leave if they fail to qualify for the Champions League this season.
Van Dijk was asked whether Liverpool should play in the Champions League next season. “It’s 100% because I want to play in the Champions League and I want other people to do the same,” he said.
“But ahead of the final season of his current contract I need to play in the Champions League so we are working very hard to make that happen.
“I think this season can still be special, despite all the difficulties and injuries we had during the summer and at the beginning of the season. We are still in the Champions League, we are still in the FA Cup so we will see what happens.
“But we need to be consistent, we need to work and we need to enjoy it, because it’s a very privilege to be able to go out there every time and represent the club and play good football.”
‘Professionals have a duty to take responsibility for the new generation of players’
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Van Dijk speaks to Gary Neville about the role of media in football and its impact on players.
Earlier this season, Van Dijk had a row with former Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney over his criticism of the defender.
The two appeared together amazon prime This is where the Reds skipper confronted Rooney over his comments after Liverpool beat Real Madrid in the Champions League.
Van Dijk believes former players turned pundits should be cautious about criticism given the current climate of social media and sensational headlines.
“Personally, I can handle it, but I’m a little worried about the next generation. I feel the former top players have a responsibility to the new generation.
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Sky Sports’ Vicky Gomersall speaks to Arne Slot, Richard Hughes and Billy Hogan at the latest Reds Roundtable. You can watch the full 35-minute debate on the Liverpool FC YouTube channel.
“Criticism is absolutely normal, part of the game and I think it should remain that way, but sometimes it turns into clickbait, provocative remarks and without considering the impact it can have on the mental aspect of players who are constantly on social media, especially the younger generation.
“You can say, ‘Okay, you shouldn’t be on social media.’ That’s something I’ve mentioned (to them) many times.
“There’s always that when you have a good game, young players see all the positive praise, but when you have a bad game, if you get bullied or get bad criticism on social media, it can really affect you. I’ve seen that in the past and now with certain players because it’s not easy.
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Sky Sports News’ Vinny O’Connor assesses Liverpool’s work in the January transfer window.
“The situation is only going to get worse because platforms these days are constantly on everyone with clickbait and headlines.
“I think especially the former pros, the top players who have been through everything, have a responsibility to protect that aspect a little bit as well. That might be something to look at.”
What does retirement hold for you?
Van Dijk turns 35 in July and has 18 months left on his current Liverpool contract and is now clearly thinking about retirement plans.
On whether he would enter the professional field himself, Van Dyke said, “I would never say no, because I think I have a platform to say or do the right thing. But I don’t think I can be an expert.”
“I don’t consider myself a coach. I feel like I’m breaking out of a world in that you’re constantly under pressure. It’s not that I don’t like it because that’s part of what I wanted to be, but it’s about quitting for a while and then going back into that world, and also not really having control over what happens on the pitch.
Van Dijk turns 35 in July but is still playing at the highest level for both club and country.
“I absolutely love inspiring the next generation. I often attend the academy. Because I feel like they are the players who will ultimately keep Liverpool going.
“I want to have my own youth tournament and make sure it’s the biggest U13 tournament in the world, so there’s something to that. I know what it brings to those young players and I really like it. But let’s see, there’s plenty of time.”
‘Halland is a modern striker’
Speaking about Manchester City striker Erling Haaland, Van Dijk said: “He is an amazing striker. I have played against Erling for a long time. He is a modern striker: strong, fast, a natural goalscorer. And it will be a tough game.
“It was a very tough game over there, if we brought it back it could have been a completely different game, but we ended up losing of course in the second half.
“But Sunday is another opportunity. It was always a difficult game, the atmosphere was very good and we were looking forward to it. It will be great to be together again.”
Watch Liverpool v Man City live on Sky Sports Premier League and Main Event from 4pm on Super Sunday. Kickoff at 4:30 PM.
