Liverpool are a much worse side without Virgil van Dijk and Alisson Becker in the team.
That’s the view of former England international goalkeeper David Seaman. Speaking on his ‘Seaman Says’ podcast, the 59-year-old claimed that it’s no coincidence Liverpool have improved after Van Dijk’s return to fitness.
“When you look at the quality of their squad, they were always going to get better. As bad as it was, it wasn’t that bad. They had injuries, they had Van Dijk out for quite a long time, who was a massive player for them,” he said.
“When him and Alisson came it just showed you what they were missing, and when either of those are out, they really miss them. It was only going to be a matter of time until they started clicking again because their quality is just too good.”
With the two key men back in the side, Seaman predicts a 2-0 win for the Reds tomorrow against Bournemouth.
Virgil holds the key to Liverpool form
This may seem like an obvious point from Seaman, but it’s still one worth making. The crux of it is that really, in order to be at their best, the Reds need both Alisson and Van Dijk on the pitch. Not just one of them.
To be fair, Liverpool have had both of their two big men at the back fit for most of this disastrous campaign. A lot of the time, it simply hasn’t made a difference.
For Alisson’s part, he’s done his best to change that. As Kenny Dalglish pointed out yesterday, the Brazilian stopper is just as important to Liverpool as Mohamed Salah.
This season, it’s arguable that Ali has actually been even more important than Mo. Without his brilliance, Liverpool would surely be lower in the table.
On the flip side of that, had they had Van Dijk at his best, they’d surely have been higher. The 31-year-old has been run into the ground ever since his injury return back in 2021. Having had a little break over the turn of the year though, he now looks much more refreshed.
Helping Liverpool to five clean sheets on the bounce, the pair can make all the difference when in form. If Virgil in particular can maintain his level until the end of the season, the Reds will be in good shape for a top-four finish.