It’s not often that you can call something, or someone, who costs a whopping £75million a bargain but Liverpool’s acquisition of Virgil van Dijk is starting to look like one.
The Reds paid a world record fee to get the Dutch international defender from Southampton and it’s not hyperbole to say that the impact he’s had on the team has been nothing short of sensational.
Liverpool’s defence used to be seen as a huge weakness and rightly so as they used to ship goals left, right and centre.
Things became much better when Van Dijk arrived last January and this season, after the arrival of goalkeeper Alisson, Liverpool now have a historically good defence.
Van Dijk recently became the first defensive player since Tottenham’s Jan Vertonghen in 2013 to be named as the Premier League’s Player of the Month, as he helped the Reds to win every single game that they played in December.
Liverpool were unbeaten in the Premier League throughout December and Van Dijk played in all eight of their matches and even managed to score his first league goal for the Reds as they beat Wolves 2-0.
The Reds haven’t won the league since 1990 and their fans are desperate for that 29-year wait to come to an end, but they are well aware that Manchester City are a formidable challenger, whilst Tottenham Hotspur can’t be ignored either.
According to the world’s best bookmakers, such as Betfred, Liverpool have the best chance they’ve had to win the title since 2013/14 and Van Dijk is a major reason why that is the case.
With Jurgen Klopp’s side possessing the firepower of Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah, they know that if they can keep a clean sheet, they’ll have chances to score at least one goal, and that is a recipe for success.
If Van Dijk can continue to marshal the Reds’ back four in the same manner as he has done so far this season, he could have his hands on the Premier League title in which case, that £75million will seem like the bargain of the century.
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