Why Troy Deeney hates Liverpool colossus Virgil van Dijk

Watford captain Troy Deeney has confessed he loathes the thought of going up against Liverpool centre-back Virgil van Dijk. 

Van Dijk, 27, has formed a formidable centre-back partnership with Joe Gomez this season as the Reds sit top of the Premier League table having only conceded two goals, as well as winning their opening six matches.

Deeney started up front for the Hornets and fired a blank in last season’s 5-0 capitulation against Liverpool on Merseyside, while he has also failed to find the back of the net on his previous two meetings with the Dutchman.

The arrival of Van Dijk at Anfield has coincided with eight successive home top-flight clean sheets for the club, and Jurgen Klopp’s men have also conceded the fewest league goals since the arrival of the former Southampton defender.

Deeney, speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live’s The Monday Night Club, has now shed light on his previous encounters with the world’s most expensive defender.

He said: “I’ve said it many times, I hate him. I hate going up against him.

“He’s too big, too strong, too quick, too good on the ball, loves fighting, a good head of hair.

“One of those guys that sprays on his top as well, so it smells lovely! When he runs past you, it’s like ‘I can’t catch you.”

The former Walsall marksman also did not hesitate to lavish praise on Van Dijk’s partner, Gomez, with the England international playing an integral part in Liverpool’s extremely watertight defence.

He added: “I’ve said for a very long time that I’ve got a massive respect for Joe Gomez. He could be England’s centre-half for the next 15 years.

“He is a beast of a player. And going next to someone like Van Dijk, he is only going to get better.”

Gomez has made a sensational comeback after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury in 2015, which kept him out of action for over a year and threatened to hinder his career.

However, the 21-year-old is now enjoying the form of his life and was reinstated back into the England fold earlier this month, with the defender starting in the 2-1 loss to Spain in the UEFA Nations League.

Next up for Liverpool is a home tie against Chelsea in the Third Round of the EFL Cup on Wednesday evening before facing the Londoners again in the Premier League at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

The post Why Troy Deeney hates Liverpool colossus Virgil van Dijk appeared first on Squawka News.

From Squawka NewsSquawka News https://ift.tt/2Qa5gPX