Sergio Aguero noted that Virgil van Dijk provided something of culture shock to Erling Haaland in the Norwegian’s competitive debut against Liverpool in the Community Shield.
The former Borussia Dortmund star did find himself in good positions throughout the encounter with Jurgen Klopp’s men, though failed to leave his stamp on the game in question, thanks in no small part to the efforts of the Reds’ talismanic No.4.
“He was too used to Germany,” the former Manchester City star said on his Twitch channel (via the Daily Mail). “Haaland thought he was alone, then Van Dijk arrived and said ‘welcome to the Premier League’.”
The Sky Blues suffered a 3-1 defeat at the hands of their title rivals as fellow new boy Darwin Nunez got off the mark with a goal of his own to secure victory at the King Power Stadium and a first piece of silverware for the FA Cup holders.
It was clear from the off that a period of adaptation would be required for both big-money signings, regardless of their quality, as we’ve already discovered to a certain degree given the stylistic differences between Benfica and ourselves.
We’re under no illusions that Haaland will, more likely than not, turn out to be a roaring success for the Etihad-based outfit in the long-run, much in the same way that £64m up front for Nunez more or less guarantees a successful transfer given our recruitment team’s reluctance to spend big without some level of certainty attached.
Liverpool understands that they have only won one battle in a war that will go for 9 months.