Virgil van Dijk appears to aim injury dig at Arsenal after Liverpool’s 2-2 draw at the Emirates

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Liverpool secured a hard-fought point at the Emirates Stadium as they played out a 2-2 draw against Arsenal in what turned out to be an entertaining game of football.

The Reds had to come from behind thanks to goals from Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah as Bukayo Saka and Mikel Merino struck for the hosts in the first half.

Arsenal’s injury situation emerged as a big talking point before the game as there were talks that their supposedly mounting absentees list was growing larger.

And Van Dijk has suggested that their injury woes aren’t as serious as what is being projected by the media.

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk makes honest claim after Arsenal draw

Both Jurrien Timber and Saka – who were doubts before the game – started for Arsenal, although they were subbed off late in the game and Gabriel Magalhaes also had to be withdrawn due to a knee problem.

When asked if Liverpool tried to take advantage of the home side as they were anxious after another injury to Gabriel, Van Dijk seemed to suggest that Arsenal only had two regular starters out injured – Martin Odegaard and Riccardo Calafiori.

“Another player injured? I think they had just two players injured today,” said Van Dijk on Sky Sports after the game.

“Obviously they played a very very strong team and it’s part of the game. We were pushing and deservedly scored the equaliser.”

Van Dijk also said he’s calm about his Liverpool future, with his current contract set to expire at the end of the current season.

Liverpool actually had more players injured than Arsenal

With Diogo Jota, Alisson Becker, Harvey Elliott, Conor Bradley and Federico Chiesa out for the trip to North London, Liverpool were without five players who are usually part of the matchday squad for an important game.

Read More: Jamie Carragher says he was really ‘disappointed’ by something Liverpool did against Arsenal

Sure, William Saliba was suspended and the likes of Odegaard and Calafiori are important players for Arsenal, but the media made a mountain out of a molehill in terms of their absentees before the game.

There is a case to be made that Takehiro Tomiyasu and Kieran Tierney are also on the sidelines, but Liverpool still had more players absent for the game and not much was said about it ahead of the game.