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Beth Lindop
Virgil van Dijk stated that it’s “pointless” to focus on the Premier League standings after Liverpool‘s 3-0 loss to Manchester City, yet he remains optimistic about turning the season around.
Under Arne Slot’s management, Liverpool experienced their fifth league loss of the season at the Etihad, with Erling Haaland, Nico González, and Jérémy Doku scoring for the hosts. This defeat leaves Liverpool in eighth, trailing leaders Arsenal by eight points. However, Van Dijk believes the team’s focus should not be on the title race.
“There’s no point in checking the table for us, that’s it,” the defender remarked. “If we’ve lost as many games as we have, looking at the standings isn’t productive at this point. However, I’ve been in the game long enough to know that seasons are not determined in November or December.”
“It’s around March or April that things start to get really interesting up there. We want to be among the contenders, but there’s still a long way to go and we need to work hard. Staying humble and dedicated is our only focus moving forward,” he continued.
Van Dijk thought he had equalized with a header just before halftime, but the goal was disallowed after Andy Robertson was controversially deemed to be obstructing Gianluigi Donnarumma’s view.
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“I’m not sure who was on VAR, maybe Michael Oliver? The officials on the field and those behind the screen need to make the right decisions,” Van Dijk commented. “Today, it was ruled that the goal wouldn’t count because Andy was supposedly obstructing Donnarumma, but I believe the goal should have been allowed; that’s all I’ll say since I’m not the decision-maker.”
When asked about how Liverpool can recover from the defeat, Van Dijk reflected, “You can’t simply overlook results like this. If you do, you won’t improve. It’s essential to reflect on what went wrong and how to get better,” he shared.
“You must take responsibility; I certainly do. We must consider what could have been improved and carry that into future matches. There’s no reason to get discouraged; we’ve faced tough opponents this week, and we managed two wins out of three. We need to keep pushing forward.”
“This season has been challenging for various reasons, but I have faith that we can turn it around. It won’t happen instantly; we must keep working, and having everyone fit will be crucial for us in the locker room,” he concluded.