Virgil van Dijk defends teammates decision to go on vacation before United loss
Liverpool were dealt their latest defeat in what has been a drastically disappointing campaign, but their captain came to the defense of his teammates.
Less than a year after winning the Premier League in Arne Slot’s first season at Anfield, Liverpool have seen a title defense season that has been filled with more disappointment than anything else. Sunday’s loss to Manchester United was just another blemish on a difficult campaign, but Virgil van Dijk did defend some his his teammates decision to leave town in the days leading up to the match.
Liverpool suffering “disappointing season”
Liverpool are in the midst of a chase for Champions League play next year, and while it does seem like a reachable goal, their match over the weekend complicated things just a bit more. They bounced back from a 2-0 deficit after allowing two goals in the first quarter of an hour, but Kobbie Mainoo decided it with a 77th minute goal that distanced United from Liverpool in the standings.
Their captain had to face the music after another tough loss against one of the top teams in the league and was self reflective on what has been a forgettable season. “I’m not here to make excuses,” van Dijk said. “It’s been a very disappointing season, an unacceptable season for us, and it’s tough.”
There will be no title opportunities after the Reds who crashed out of the Champions League and the FA Cup within the last month. The Premier League has been out of their grasp for quite sometime, and van Dijk knows this can’t become customary at the club. “We shouldn’t feel sorry for ourselves whatsoever. We have to work, we have to turn this around and make sure that next season these things don’t happen because it’s not Liverpool.”
City trip didn’t cause loss
Some reporters did ask the club captain to explain the decision of some of his teammates to leave Liverpool in the days leading up to up the massive match. Arne Slot gave his guys a few days off, and some of the players used that time to get out of Merseyside.
The loss only adds fuel to an already burning fire at Anfield, but van Dijk has shrugged off speculation that his teammate’s “city breaks” were the reason for the loss. “I’m not sure it’s a holiday,” Van Dijk said. “It’s a city trip. But I think if you have one day off, and you don’t have many days off, they decide what they want to do with their families. We are not kids. Everyone is an adult.”
The dutch defender used another Premier League coach as a reference, although the situation isn’t quite the same. “You see Pep Guardiola giving [Manchester City] three days off, for example, the last weeks in a row and they are doing pretty well. It is finding the right balance.” Unfortunately for van Dijk, Slot and Liverpool, City are in the hunt for the Premier League title while Liverpool will likely settle for a top four or five finish.
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