IRON MAN 5

Van Dijk is set to become fifth outfield star to play every minute of Premier League-winning season

VIRGIL VAN DIJK has many reasons to want to pull on his boots again this season.

The chance to add to the two league medals he won while at Celtic is chief among them, and doing it for a title-starved Liverpool would make that even sweeter.

But there is a personal milestone on the horizon as well, one achieved by just four players in the Premier League’s previous 26 seasons and it is one they wear like a badge of honour.

Gary Pallister, John Terry, Wes Morgan and Cesar Azpilicueta are the only four outfield players to play every minute of a Premier League title-winning season.

And with 29 games played this season, Liverpool’s Dutch rock at the centre of a defence that has conceded just 21 goals has not once quit his post in the 2,610 minutes of league action.

In today’s world of facts, figures and stats, players and fans are aware of all the milestones.

But the first outfield ironman to play every minute in the charge to a Premier League crown did not even realise he had achieved the feat until he was posed the same question in a quiz.

Pallister was part of the Manchester United side which lifted the first Premiership title in 1992-93 and ended the club’s 26-year wait for a league crown.

Since then only Chelsea rock Terry (2014-15), Leicester defender Morgan (2015-16) and another Blues back-line member in Azpilicueta (2016-17) have repeated the feat.

Pallister’s achievement came in a 42-game season, so he can claim an extra 360 minutes.

“The other lads had it easy, didn’t they?” joked the former United defender. “I didn’t realise until probably a few years later that I had played every minute of every game. I knew I played every game.

“I think it came up in a quiz and brought it to my attention that I played every minute.

“I am quite proud of the record. I was proud of the games I played in my career. I probably never took into account

I was the only one to do it in a 42-game season. No wonder my body is knackered now!”

Pallister played through injuries but the closest he came to missing one of the 42 games was the penultimate one – thanks to a sore head.

On the eve of Alex Ferguson’s men taking on Blackburn, their nearest challengers Aston Villa suffered a surprise defeat by Oldham to hand United the title.

Cue a party in the home of Pallister’s central defensive partner Steve Bruce, below.

Pallister said: “There was no way we were going to miss the game. That was that team. We liked to celebrate when we won things. It was something the manager promoted.

“But I don’t think he expected us to go that mad on the

night.”

Pallister achieved another notable feat against Blackburn – he had been United’s only outfield player who had failed to score, but put that right when he banged in a free-kick from the edge of the area. He said: “I was the butt of a few jokes before the game and the drink was talking when I said, ‘If we get a free-kick I’ll be taking it’.”

The fact only three others have followed Pallister shows how difficult a feat it is to achieve.

You need to avoid injuries but even then rotation of huge squads makes it more difficult.

But Van Dijk was on course when the season was halted.

The Reds’ next hardest worked,

Trent AlexanderArnold, has played

60 minutes less.

Pallister said: “If you play every minute of every game you need a bit of luck. I am sure there were lads who were better physically prepared than I was who had injuries or got subbed.

“At the time it was all about winning the title, playing your part and being part of that team that put away 26 years of frustration.”

Van Dijk will probably have the same feeling as he waits to end Liverpool’s 30 years without the top crown.