Virgil van Dijk will be enjoying the rest that our postponed match with Chelsea has handed him but it won’t be long before he’s right back in the thick of it, as captain of his country.
Speaking with the website for the Dutch national team (onsoranje.nl), our No.4 said: “Every time I put on the shirt, I see it as an opportunity to achieve great things.
“Not just for myself and for the team, but especially for my country. It remains special to be able to do that as a captain.”
The 31-year-old will be aware that it’s quite possible that this could be his final chance to represent his nation at a World Cup and so the honour of being able to do so as captain, will be huge.
There is a lot of pressure on the shoulders of the former Southampton man, whether it be for Jurgen Klopp at club level or for Louis van Gaal and country, and as he is the captain – lots of people will be looking to him.
This campaign has been far from the best for our centre-half but he will hope that some solid performances before he heads to Qatar in November, will be enough to ensure that he can achieve silverware in what is sure to be a memorable campaign.
Anyone can win a World Cup and the defender will be dreaming of lifting that famous trophy in December but there’s a lot of football to be played before he can even entertain that thought.
Let’s hope a seamless international break leads into a run of wins for the Reds, ahead of our break in the winter.