Virgil van Dijk is set to be partnered by Joe Gomez when Liverpool travel to Old Trafford on Monday night according to The Athletic’s James Pearce.
The 25-year-old, who was signed from Charlton for £3.5m in the summer of 2015, has not started a Premier League game alongside our No. 4 since the shock 7-2 defeat to Aston Villa in October 2020.
Ibrahima Konate (knee) and Joel Matip (groin) will once again be unavailable for the clash with Erik ten Hag’s side meaning Gomez is expected to be given his chance to impress from the start.
“So much talent, so much misfortune. Monday night will be the first time Joe Gomez has started a PL game at centre-back with Virgil van Dijk for 22 months. A big opportunity for him in the absence of Konate and Matip to become a regular once again,” Pearce wrote on his official Twitter account.
READ MORE: (Video) Liverpool loanee Leighton Clarkson delights with 30-yard free-kick screamer
The England international, who signed a new long-term contract with the club earlier this summer, impressed as a substitute in the 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace on Monday night with his pace and positioning helping the Reds to dominate the game even though they were down to 10-men.
With the Qatar World Cup coming up in November, Gomez will be eager to consolidate his spot in Jurgen Klopp’s XI in the coming months in an attempt to be included in Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions squad.
VOTE for Empire of the Kop as Best Club Content Creator (Premier League) here: Football Content Awards
OR on Twitter with the FCA’s one-click Twitter link with: I am voting for @Empireofthekop in @The_FCAs for #BestClubContentCreator (Premier League)
During the 2020/21 title-winning campaign, the London-born defender struck up a great partnership alongside van Dijk and was virtually undroppable.
He’s struggled with a number of long-term injuries ever since his arrival on Merseyside but it’s credit to our new No. 2 that he was willing to extend his stay at the club and fight for his spot.
Gomez made just 21 appearances (across all competitions) for the Reds last season and was often used as cover for Trent Alexander-Arnold at right back rather than at his preferred position of central defence.
United will be right up for it on Monday night but let’s hope Gomez and his teammates can put in a real shift to ensure we come away with all three points!
You can see Pearce’s tweet below via his official Twitter account:
So much talent, so much misfortune. Monday night will be the first time Joe Gomez has started a PL game at centre-back with Virgil van Dijk for 22 months.
A big opportunity for him in the absence of Konate and Matip to become a regular once again. #LFC https://t.co/j38F5NnW4W— James Pearce (@JamesPearceLFC) August 20, 2022