Stephen Warnock has admitted his surprise at how many games Virgil Van Dijk has played for Liverpool this season.
Writing in a column for BBC Sport, Warnock said the amount of games played by Van Dijk has been ‘awesome.’
“I was also unsure whether we would see the best of Virgil van Dijk on his return from an eight-month absence with a cruciate ligament injury,” mused Warnock.
“I don’t think anyone envisaged him playing virtually every game, but he has. When a centre-half has been rested it’s usually been Joel Matip or Ibrahima Konate – Van Dijk has been just as awesome a presence as he was before.
“You have to give credit to Klopp and his staff for managing his return but Van Dijk deserves some too, because he said he would not play for the Netherlands in the European Championship in order to focus on his recovery. He wanted to be ready for Liverpool’s season. In hindsight, what a crucial decision that was.”
It must have been a gut-wrenching decision for Van Dijk. He was set to captain his country in his first ever international tournament prior to Jordan Pickford’s recklessness.
But as Warnock says, it was 100% the right call and one that Virgil, Liverpool and Holland will benefit from in the long-run.
Virgil all set for Paris
After such a magnificent comeback season, there was some worry that Van Dijk may miss the biggest game of all.
It was hearts in mouths time for Liverpool fans as the Dutchman took himself off for extra-time in the FA Cup final.
Thankfully, it was just a precaution. As Van Dijk declared himself yesterday, he’s completely fine and raring to go against Real Madrid.
Great news for Liverpool and another example of the 30-year-old’s maturity when it comes to managing his own body.
Many years to come
With Virgil being in command of how and when to exert himself, he can hopefully keep playing a similar amount of games long into the future.
At thirty, he could still play for a good number of years before hanging up his boots. Despite last year’s big injury, he has barely missed a game for Liverpool in four-and-a-half years, well earning his reported £240k-a-week.
Van Dijk is as robust as they come. As he can tend to coast through games, with attackers avoiding him if they possibly can, the physical toll on his body shouldn’t be as great as in other players.
This can hopefully lead to Liverpool relying on their commander at the back for the rest of Jurgen Klopp’s time at the club and even beyond. Here’s hoping anyway.
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