One of football’s good guys: Has any player enjoyed a greater rise in 2018 than Virgil van Dijk?

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Virgil van Dijk has been a revelation for both club and country, with 2018 proving one of his finest years as a professional footballer.

But should it come as a surprise to anyone? Van Dijk, who dons the number four jersey whether it be orange or red, is a colossus of a central defender, plain and simple.

He embodies all that is required of an elite centre-back – reads the game well, has a ‘take no prisoners’ mentality, aerially supreme and organises those around him effectively – and the Dutchman is arguably the best in the Premier League, with very few superior across Europe.

His stature and natural-born leadership traits led Dutch national team boss Ronald Koeman to make him captain ahead of his first game in charge against England earlier this year.

He has since forged an impressive central defensive partnership with Ajax teenager Matthijs de Ligt and they have been along with so many others central to Oranje topping a Uefa Nations League group containing the last two world champions.

However, it is not solely through his footballing ability that he is winning plaudits this year. Van Dijk has shown himself a champion in terrms of personality, too, and certain recent gestures have exemplified the kind of man he is.

Winning friends

Liverpool wanted Van Dijk badly. The summer of 2017 saw him submit a transfer request away from Southampton, and though he would stay put beyond the deadline, Van Dijk ultimately made his way to Anfield in January 2018.

Confirmation of his transfer, which made him the most expensive defender in history, was greeted eagerly by the Reds’ loyal and passionate fanbase. But upon arriving to watch a home game against Leicester City, to a soundtrack of jubilant Liverpool supporters, Van Dijk appeared to rush past an excited 10-year-old fan.

He can be forgiven for doing so; so much was happening. But the native of Breda, upon seeing the footage, was determined to put things right. One cannot underestimate the power of being recognised by your heroes, especially to aspirational youngsters. And Van Dijk, who idolised Jaap Stam growing up, knows this all too well.

So, the Dutchman sought out the boy, a season-ticket holder named Rocco Daly, and presented him with a signed Liverpool shirt.

“Everything was so busy that day,” Van Dijk said in a Mail interview. “We walked across the pitch to leave and I was just like ‘tunnel vision… go’. But then I saw some pictures later and I thought, ‘Woah, that isn’t good’. So I arranged something for him.

“The video of him receiving the shirt is incredible and I met him at the Crystal Palace away game and asked him if he was OK. So it worked out well. He was one of the first kids to have my name on his shirt, so that was a good start!”

Gifting fans signed football shirts is first-and-foremost admirable, though also commonplace. But rare was Van Dijk’s gesture to mascot before the Oranje’s home meeting with France last week.

“Virgil saw in the player tunnel that Fieke (a Netherlands mascot) was cold. He asked if she wanted his jacket, but she said it was not necessary. When they were standing on the field, he kept her warm and decided to put his jacket around her. Really very sweet,” her mother, Sietske van Hal, told Dutch newspaper Algemeen Dagblad.

“Fieke was born with a muscle disease. She is a very cheerful and positive girl, but she has regular therapy and has difficulty writing at school. She works with typeles and has to do compulsory assignments every day. We wanted to do something nice for her.”

Thou shalt not pass

Under Jurgen Klopp, there is one area where Liverpool have truly shone. And that is up front.

The Reds’ forward line – consisting of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane – is among the very best in Europe and nearly won them last season’s Champions League.

However, as famed basketball coach Dave Thorson once said, offence sells the tickets, but defence wins championships. There’s a reason Klopp was determined to land Van Dijk, and the results speak for themselves.

Photo by Salvio Calabrese.

He has played a pivotal role in changing Liverpool fortunes at the back. Of course, one athlete cannot do it by themselves in team sports, it is difficult to think of a more impactful signing this year, not only in terms of individual efforts but also in improving teammates. Trent Alexander-Arnold, a revelation at right-back, has even gone as far to described England and club teammate Joe Gomez as “a mini Virgil van Dijk”.

As for the numbers; to date Van Dijk has featured across 26 Premier League matches (all in 2018) with the Reds conceding 15 goals while keeping 14 clean sheets. Before the 4-1 defeat to Cardiff last month, Liverpool had gone since February without conceding in the Premier League at Anfield. Van Dijk’s performances has led Gary Neville to describe him as a “monster” with Chris Sutton saying he’s up there with Lionel Messi.

Captain and leader

Van Dijk should have been a Dutch international long before his debut against Kazakhstan in October 2015. It was until he moved to Southampton, and playing in the English top division, before former national team boss Danny Blind gave the centre-back his first cap (even though he was an unused substitute in three matches while representing Celtic).

Since then, he has become a regular fixture; though it is fair to say the last year has seen him come into his own. Oranje’s failure to make the 2018 World Cup was another blow, on the back off missing Euro 2016, and changes were needed to be made. In came Ronald Koeman, who really should have succeeded Louis van Gaal in 2014, and one of his first appointments was making Van Dijk his leader on the pitch. And the Liverpool defender taken on the role big time.

Van Dijk, despite his relatively tender age of 27, is one of the more experienced members of the group. Seven games in as captain have resulted in just two defeats, a home friendly against England ahead of this summer’s World Cup finals and away to France in the Uefa Nations League, and three huge wins: against the European champions Portugal (albeit in a friendly) as well as against the last two world champions in the aforementioned UNL.

Aside from performing his expected duties, Van Dijk has popped up with three goals; two against historic rivals Germany, the latter of which was scored in Oranje’s dramatic 2-2 draw in Gelsenkirchen. Trailing 2-1, Koeman’s assistant coaches recommended Van Dijk be used as an auxiliary striker in the final moments. The gamble paid off when Van Dijk specularly volleyed past a rooted Manuel Neuer and sent the Dutch to next year’s finals alongside hosts Portugal, Switzerland and England.

At the full-time whistle, as his teammates celebrated their achievement, there was a touching moment between Van Dijk and match referee Ovidiu Hațegan. The Romanian official reportedly learned of his mother’s passing in the build-up to the game and was naturally emotional. “He broke down and started crying, because his mother recently passed away,” he told reporters afterwards. “I wish him strength and told him that he officiated well. It’s a small thing, but I hope it helped.”

Early days but the future seems a lot brighter under the leadership of Koeman and Van Dijk.

The post One of football’s good guys: Has any player enjoyed a greater rise in 2018 than Virgil van Dijk? appeared first on Squawka News.



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