BBC pundit Garth Crooks has been in awe of Liverpool defender Virgil Van Dijk for his performance in the 3-1 win over Manchester United on Sunday.
He has praised the Liverpool mainstay for the way he looked so assured at the back despite the importance of the game and who they were playing.
The Reds overcame their rivals at Anfield courtesy of goals from Sadio Mane and substitute Xherdan Shaqiri, which means that they remain at the summit of the Premier League, one point above Manchester City.
“The big Dutchman could play football in a cardigan and carpet slippers while smoking a pipe,” he told BBC Sport.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Liverpool defender look so comfortable at the back in a match against Manchester United. Virgil van Dijk is looking supreme these days and this victory for Liverpool never looked in doubt.”
OPINION
When do you ever see Van Dijk have a bad game for Liverpool these days? Answer – basically never. He is without a doubt one of the most reliable players in the squad and there will never be a match where he is not in the starting XI. Crooks is right to heap praise on how comfortable he looked on Sunday though. The stakes are always high in these types of matches, but this seemed to have bypassed him, as he looked more at ease than he has ever been. United’s attack was no match for the Dutch giant and he really starved them of any threat – something which would have been missing if Liverpool did not have a defender like him in their starting XI. The way he has come in and transformed the defence is something that should really be admired and there is no doubt that he was worth every penny spent on him. Just as Crooks points out, the £150,000-a-week [Spotrac] ace is “supreme” – and that is not going to end any time soon.
