FAN POWER MADE VIRGIL TURN RED

VIRGIL VAN DIJK was at last season’s Champions League final and saw enough Liverpool fans to make moving to Anfield a no-brainer.

The then-Southampton defender went with a friend to the Real Madrid v Juventus clash and said: “From the moment I got there a lot of people in hospitality were Liverpool fans and were saying, ‘Join, please join’.

“It was funny to see how big the support and fan base of Liverpool is.”

His protracted £75million switch eventually happened in January and the Reds defender (above) said: “That sort of thing stays with you. Influence? That is a big word, but it does something to you.

“There had been a lot of talk about different clubs at that time. It could have been different fans coming up to me and saying, ‘Come to us’. But 90 per cent of the supporters were Liverpool. That says a lot.”