Southampton defender Virgil van Dijk has enjoyed a superb campaign.
Pundits Paul Merson, Matt Le Tissier and Phil Thompson have all raved about Southampton defender Virgil van Dijk during an episode of Sky Sports’ Soccer Saturday (05/11/2016).
Southampton’s defence has been one of the best in the Premier League so far this season, as they’ve conceded just 12 goals – only four teams in the league have conceded fewer.
Of course, goalkeeper Fraser Forster and wily veteran defender Jose Fonte deserve praise for their part in the solidity under Claude Puel, but one man has stood out from the crowd.
Southampton’s Virgil van Dijk celebrates scoring their first goal
Dutch centre back Virgil van Dijk has been one of the Premier League’s top defenders so far this season, whilst he’s also shown that he can step up in the Europa League having produced a dominant performance against Inter Milan last week – a game in which he scored Southampton’s equaliser in a 2-1 win.
Van Dijk, 25, has it all; aerial ability, strength, pace, technical ability and a developing positional sense, which improved whilst playing alongside the experienced Fonte.
A report from The Mirror over the weekend suggested that Manchester United want to sign Van Dijk to boost their defensive options, and it was claimed that the former Celtic ace could cost around £30m to prise away from the South Coast.
Southampton manager Claude Puel and Virgil van Dijk
Over the weekend, pundits Paul Merson, Matt Le Tissier and Phil Thompson all spoke to Sky Sports’ Soccer Saturday (05/11/2016) about the defender, and spoke glowingly of his diplays.
Merson suggested that Van Dijk has improved massively since coming down from Scotland, as he picked up bad habits at Celtic because it was too easy for him, but now thinks that Van Dijk is worth £30m after John Stones’ move to Manchester City, suggesting that the Dutchman is more of a finished article – and urged Chelsea to move for him.
Saints legend Le Tissier thinks that Van Dijk does switch off sometimes because he finds the game so easy, whilst Thompson praised him for being ‘absolutely fantastic’, heralding his improvement since joining from Celtic.
Paul Merson
“I think he’s got much better since he came down,” said Merson. “I watched him at Celtic, and I think he picked up bad habits because it was that easy for him, and I think he got bigged up when he first came here. Now, I think he’s got used to playing in this league, and the lad can play. I’m surprised nobody has come in for him, when Stones has gone for £50m, there you’ve got more of a finished article than Stones. The way things are going, I’d say he’s worth £30m. Chelsea need a defender who can play, who can come out of defence and play.”
“I think sometimes, the only thing is that sometimes I think he finds the game too easy and he just occasionally switches off, only because he finds it so easy,” Le Tissier stated.
“Where this boy has improved, he’s realised that down here, the game is quicker, tougher, faster and if you get caught out of position and you don’t back in quickly, you get punished, and I think he’s learned that. At Celtic, he was coming out of the back, and you saw him playing almost on the left wing and he’s doing tricks in the box because he’s a good footballer. Down here, you can’t do that. I think he has been absolutely fantastic,” added Thompson.
What have you thought of Van Dijk’s performances this season?
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