Peter Schmeichel has raised doubts over what he is seeing from Liverpool’s new captain Virgil van Dijk heading into the new Premier League season.
With Jordan Henderson now in Saudi Arabia, the Liverpool armband has now been handed to Virgil van Dijk, as he bids to guide Jurgen Klopp’s side to newly founded success after they missed out on Champions League football last season.
But whilst watching the ice-cool Dutch defender last term and in pre-season this summer, Schmeichel thinks that he looks ‘nervous’ and questioned if he knows what he is doing, as he told BBC Radio 5 Live Sport.
Liverpool fans expected changes after their decline of the last 12 months, but perhaps not to this extent where even Henderson and Fabinho are no longer here.
Either way, it puts more pressure on the senior guys and van Dijk is now the leading man of the dressing room.
But the 32-year-old was criticised and questioned by Manchester United’s legendary keeper, after watching him in action in pre-season.
“Are you worried that you haven’t strengthed in that department?” asked Schmeichel about Liverpool’s centre-half position.
“You have got Virgil van Dijk. He looks, again it’s pre-season games, but also based on some of his performances last season, he looks a little bit nervous and unsure about what he is supposed to do in these combinations that you could actually make in the centre of defence.”
Big pressure on Virgil van Dijk
Ever since van Dijk sustained that season-ending injury in 2020, many feel that he has lost something to his game.
But it has been a while since that unfortunate moment against Everton and Jordan Pickford occurred, with his performances nowhere near where they once were when Liverpool were winning the title.
There was a certain drop-off during these past 12 months and that puts him under big pressure heading into the new season because if they are any more signs of decline, then the knives will be out.
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