Dutch surgeon issues stark injury warning against Van Dijk playing in the Euros: “A considerable risk”

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Dutch surgeon Bas Pijnenburg told Nos (via Sport Witness) that Virgil van Dijk would be at ‘considerable risk’ of aggravating his knee injury should he feature for the national side in the upcoming Euros.

The Holland international has been out of action since suffering a damaged ACL in the Merseyside derby last year.

“A considerable risk. It takes just as long for a top athlete to recover as it does for any other person. What makes it dangerous is that a knee can quickly feel good for a top athlete,” the surgeon warned. “The muscles and coordination may already be good, but recovery is still in full swing. Starting too early would also send a bad signal to other people who have had this surgery.”

READ MORE: Klopp makes German national side admission: ‘I didn’t say that I didn’t WANT to’

The No.4’s recovery has been right on track, though Jurgen Klopp has expressed some doubt over a return before pre-season

What’s best for Van Dijk going forward?

Taking into account Jurgen Klopp’s prior concerns over the defender, not to mention the latest update from Pijnenburg, we’d be better off giving the 29-year-old the rest of the season off to recover, even if he’s technically available for the last few league games.

Of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean that Van Dijk’s national side will follow suit in this instance, potentially putting the centre-half at great risk of reinjury.

While we’d all love to see the Dutchman be back in time for the last few games of the season, we have to follow medical advice where there is a significant risk of aggravating a serious injury – we hope Frank de Boer feels the same.

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