OPINION
Many people snorted when Liverpool pulled out £75 million to sign Virgil Van Dijk from Southampton last January, but now that money looks like one of the soundest Premier League investments in recent years.
The Dutchman has been in remarkable form for the Reds so far this season, and has transformed a rickety backline into one of the most stingy defences in Europe.
So important is Van Dijk to Jurgen Klopp’s title ambitions, however, that it’s hard not to worry about what would happen to Liverpool if he were to be absent for a period of the season.
Speaking to the Daily Mail on Wednesday, Chris Sutton said: “An injury to Van Dijk now would kill off Liverpool’s bid.”
Perhaps that is a little catastrophic, but reality is that it would not be far off the truth at all.
The Reds have already looked more susceptible to dropping points since Joe Gomez and Trent Alexander-Arnold picked up injuries, and while the latter is expected back in the relatively near future, the prospect of losing Van Dijk is one that Liverpool fans won’t even dare to consider.
He has become so integral to the side’s identity, and so crucial in his marshalling of the backline, that it is genuinely difficult to see how the Reds would recover from having him missing.
Certainly none of Klopp’s potential deputies are of anything like the same calibre as the 27-year-old, and more worryingly, they all capable of making a howler that could cost the Reds precious points.
Given that Van Dijk is currently injury free, it may seem like grey sky thinking, but it’s not unfair to suggest that a title bid could hinge on keeping him healthy.
