Is Virgil van Dijk still good enough for Liverpool? | OneFootball

Liverpool’s defeat to Manchester City on Saturday was a clear indicator of how bad things are for the Reds.

Despite putting in a solid display for the first 35 minutes, Arne Slot’s side completely crumbled as soon as they found themselves 1-0 down.

The game finished 4-0 of course, and several individuals faced heavy criticism in the wake of the appalling team performance.

Virgil van Dijk was one of the players culpable for City’s dominance, with the Dutchman making multiple misjudgements that put his team at a disadvantage.

The skipper’s performance wasn’t good enough and has raised questions over whether he is good enough to be playing for Liverpool anymore.

Is Van Dijk still good enough for Liverpool?

Following on from Saturday’s defeat, Pete Hall wrote an article for the i paper, entitled ‘Virgil van Dijk is not good enough for Liverpool anymore’ and referred to Jamie Carragher’s comments about Casemiro, ‘leave the football before the football leaves you’.

The Van Dijk that played for Liverpool against City was not good enough, the Dutchman would likely be the first to admit that, but the 34-year-old has shown this season that he is far from done at an elite level.

The stats back up the fact that the Reds’ captain is still one of Europe’s best defenders too.

The legendary defender still ranks among the best in Europe in the air, has one of the highest defensive contribution numbers and has extremely strong passing numbers too.

There may have been a decline from his peak, but Van Dijk at his best was truly the best defender in world football.

Hall suggests that Van Dijk’s body language in the defeat could be a sign that the decline is ‘potentially permanent’, but every player in Liverpool’s squad looked worse against City than they have at their peak and there are clearly larger issues within the squad.

Liverpool are in a difficult spell, and Van Dijk can do better, but it would be naïve to assume that the Reds’ captain is no longer good enough.