Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has revealed his belief that Virgil Van Dijk will not play again this season.
Van Dijk was one of the best players on the planet throughout 2019, but his 2020 was marred towards it’s climax by an anterior cruciate ligament injury sustained in the Merseyside Derby at Goodison Park.
THAT challenge from Jordan Pickford was what resulted in the Dutchman ending up needing surgery. You get the feeling Liverpool fans won’t be in a rush to forgive the Toffees stopper, who may well be England number one at the European Championships this summer.
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While Liverpool fans have likely retained hope of Van Dijk playing again this campaign, Klopp has moved against those suggestions, revealing that it is highly unlikely he will. The Liverpool boss is quoted by their official website saying:
“In the moment, I don’t know where these things are coming from – nobody really, no doctor, nobody really told me there’s a chance for Virgil to play in this season again.”
“I don’t want to say that’s absolutely impossible but it’s not likely. It’s not likely. We don’t have to discuss these things really.”
“If we have space we would put them all on, even when all the medical people tell us there’s no chance. We put them on because we believe in miracles from time to time.”
“But if there’s no place then we have to consider these kind of things and say, ‘The chance is not too big so we have to make the decision.’ But if they are on the list then it’s only because we hope for nearly a miracle. That’s it.”
That will be disappointing for Reds fans to hear, but hardly surprising. Besides, if he was to come back prematurely it would be putting him at risk of sustaining further damage – which is the absolute worst case scenario.