Van Dijk the commander highlights United woes

Defender has become the key figure in Liverpool’s miserly defence – a quality lost by Mourinho’s men

When Joe Gomez signed a new deal at Liverpool, Virgil van Dijk posted a picture of himself hugging his young English accomplice on the training ground, with the words: “Well deserved brother.” Even without the injured Gomez at Anfield, Liverpool’s defensive record shames Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United.

With 26 goals conceded in 16 games – and only two clean sheets – United motor to Merseyside wondering how their rivals forged so far clear in guarding their own net. Liverpool have let in six in the same number of fixtures, with 10 clean sheets, and a goal difference of plus-28, compared to United’s plus-two. Van Dijk is a large part of the reason for Liverpool’s defensive superiority over a club who could once call on Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic, Jaap Stam and Ronny Johnsen, Steve Bruce and Gary Pallister.

There is no greater indictment of United in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era than the weekly guesswork in selection at the back and comparatively poor quality of United’s stoppers, with Phil Jones, Marcos Rojo, Victor Lindelof, Eric Bailly and Chris Smalling sharing chances to provide a defensive platform as United labour to close a 16-point gap on Jurgen Klopp’s team.

Van Dijk stopped to talk after Liverpool had progressed from their Champions League group stage with a 1-0 win over Napoli. He is no more inclined to allow a leading question go by him than he would a Marcus Rashford or Anthony Martial. With Gomez’s injury at Burnley this month, would Liverpool need to adjust for United’s visit?

“Why?” Van Dijk replies, after a pause. “I think we have been playing with Dejan [Lovren] a lot as well this season and I don’t think we change anything. We want to do the same things that we did almost all season. It’s going to be a very tough game because Man United are a good team, they have good players up front. But we are a very good team as well all over and we will be ready.”

Van Dijk exudes the assurance of probably the best centre-back in the Premier League – and one hailed by Liverpool supporters as a once-in-ageneration signing, a cure-all for the team’s defensive frailties. There is more to it than that. Alisson Becker in goal joins Van Dijk in accounting for the £146 million received for Philippe Coutinho: a spectacular double hit. Gomez, meanwhile, has the potential to reach Rio Ferdinand’s level, while Andy Robertson and Trent AlexanderArnold are upgrades at full-back.

But Van Dijk is the fulcrum, the commander, with his immense physical presence, anticipatory sharpness and strong organising voice. He is the centre-half United can only dream of as speculation links them with Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly (who might cost more than Van Dijk), the 18-year-old Ozan Kabak at Galatasaray, Tottenham’s Toby Alderweireld (again) and Inter Milan’s Milan Skriniar. As things stand, Smalling and Lindelof were struggling to be fit for Anfield, while Gomez (fractured ankle) and Joel Matip (broken collarbone) are unavailable to Klopp.

Van Dijk denies beating Napoli eased the pressure on Liverpool in the league by preventing all the focus shifting to their 28-year wait for an English title. “That’s the media who put pressure on us,” he says. “Come on, we all want to win the league, we all want to win as much as possible, but you know it’s not easy. I think what the media will say doesn’t change anything for us.”

Van Dijk was trying to force his thoughts from a big Champions League night to English football’s crazy Christmas schedule: “Obviously we like to stay top, that’s normal, but it could change. City are fantastic, Chelsea is amazing, Arsenal are doing very well. So, yeah, we need to look at ourselves, we need to perform every week, try and win every game and that’s what we do.”

United are the fifth of eight opponents for Liverpool in December, with Wolves, Newcastle and Arsenal to come. Van Dijk says: “That’s life in December. You play, you go home, you rest, you eat well, sleep. Try to relax – you don’t do other things. That’s a bit of our life at the moment.” He laughs. “But it’s not a bad life, to be fair.”

Not a bad life when pundits are placing you in the echelon of Alan Hansen, Mark Lawrenson, Jamie Carragher or Tommy Smith. “Yeah, I definitely feel that I’ve made the right decision to come here,” Van Dijk says (another dart in Man Utd’s heart).

And around him is an array of players with claims on world-class status, starting with Alisson. “He’s all right,” Van Dijk says, laughing again.

“He’s a fantastic keeper who showed it for Roma last season and showed it for us as well. He is there when we need him. Hopefully in the future we don’t need him too much but he’s doing his job very well.”

Further forward is Mohamed Salah, scorer of another Lionel Messi-esque goal in midweek, with Koulibaly on the wrong end of Salah’s trickery.

“Great guy – and is deadly in the box,” says Van Dijk, one of the few centre-backs you would fancy to stop Salah in that kind of form.