Virgil van Dijk: Man United have a ‘vulnerability’ that Liverpool ‘can exploit’ at Anfield | OneFootball

Virgil van Dijk has spoken candidly about Manchester United ahead of Liverpool’s clash against the Red Devils at Anfield this weekend.

The Reds return to Premier League action tomorrow with the aim of arresting a run of three straight defeats which left Arne Slot with plenty to ponder over the October international break.

The 47-year-old has demanded a ‘reaction’ from his players when the eternal rivals square off on Sunday, and several pundits have backed the champions to get back to winning ways on home turf.

Van Dijk hopes Liverpool ‘can exploit’ Man United ‘vulnerability’

Van Dijk was speaking to Sky Sports ahead of the match, and while he acknowledged that Man United have the capability to ‘hurt’ Liverpool, he also believes there’s a ‘vulnerability’ to Ruben Amorim’s side that the Reds can punish.

The LFC captain said of the Red Devils: “They made quality signings and they can hurt any team in the league; that’s what they’ve been doing at times throughout the season. Like I said, it’s a game that we have to be ready for whatever scenario – setpieces or counterattacks, we have to be ready.”

“At times, they’ve shown a lot of quality, but at times they’ve shown vulnerability, and hopefully that’s something we can exploit.

“We’ve been through phases, especially the years that I’ve been at the club, where we’ve felt we can have them and obviously we drew in the last two seasons. We played away and got knocked out of the FA Cup, which was pretty tough. They are always difficult, so we have to be ready for the big fight.”

(Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

Liverpool have the firepower to punish Man United

Van Dijk has referenced the few occasions over the past couple of years when Man United bloodied Liverpool’s noses despite being well adrift of the Reds in the Premier League table, and historically this has been a fixture where the apparent underdog has bitten their arch-rival.

With two wins in their last three matches, the visitors are actually the team in better form coming into the game at Anfield, although as of Saturday morning they remain eight places and five points worse off than us in the top-flight standings.

The ‘vulnerability’ of which the LFC captain spoke isn’t an entirely unfair observation – Amorim’s side conceded three goals each in their last two away matches, while their xG against tally of 9.9 is the fourth-worst in the division, and superior only to teams currently sitting 17th or lower (FBref).

Despite the criticism that several Liverpool forwards have shipped in recent weeks, the champions have still scored 13 goals in the league (the joint-third best tally behind Man City and Arsenal), and we certainly have the firepower to put United to the sword if we’re on our game tomorrow.

If Van Dijk and his teammates can play to their best – something they haven’t done collectively so far this season – they should ensure that the teams’ respective league positions are reflected in the final scoreline on Sunday.

You can watch Slot’s full pre-Manchester United press conference via Empire of the Kop on YouTube: