Man City legend Shaun Goater expects Virgil van Dijk to ‘raise his bar’ again when Liverpool host Manchester City this weekend. The Dutchman hasn’t been at his best so far this season.
Manchester City legend Shaun Goater previewed their trip to Anfield this weekend and thinks we might just see Virgil van Dijk get back to his best. Liverpool’s star defender hasn’t been at his peak this season but Goater feels he’ll be extra motivated on Sunday.
“Virgil van Dijk is not quite at his best at the moment but if you love the game, you want to see the two best players facing up to each other,” said Goater on ManCity.com. “You want to see the great teams facing each other when they’re both in form.
“But I think it’s one of those games where Virgil van Dijk himself, no matter what form he’s in, he wants to be raising his bar back to his best to say: ‘Today Haaland ain’t scoring. City ain’t scoring.’ He will be up for that.”
Virgil van Dijk vs Man City
Van Dijk hasn’t been at his best, no. The defender has struggled, much like everyone else at the club, as Liverpool’s team falls apart. There’s little protection in defence, the Reds can’t pin teams back, and the fear in their opponents has disappeared.
Part of the problem, then, is Liverpool being far too open. We’re not sure that will be a problem against City, though. Pep Guardiola’s team will want the ball and want to press high – it’s an excuse for the Reds to stay compact and look to counter-attack.
After all, Liverpool’s best performance this season came in the Community Shield against City. The Reds looked like the best team in the country on that day, outperforming their opponents and setting an early title statement.
It’s just that nearly everything after that was a statement in the other direction. Still, we do think Van Dijk and co. will correct things this Sunday and look a little more solid. Certainly, the Dutchman won’t want Erling Halaand to have an easy go of things.
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