Southampton’s Virgil van Dijk wants to leave the club
By Rayna Sidhu
The Saints’ defender has been training alone after telling the club he wants to leave, with Liverpool favourites to place a bid.
Van Dijk’s future has been questioned throughout the summer, but such stories fell flat after Liverpool were warned about their approach in trying to sign him. Southampton threatened to complain to the Premier League for Liverpool’s attempts at opening discussions with the 26 year old without the club’s permission.
Such methods are in breach of regulations and could have resulted in further action. Instead, Liverpool apologised to Southampton for any “misunderstanding” and dropped their interest.
Now, the rumour has resurfaced after the Netherlands international told his manager Mauricio Pellegrino that he wants to leave the club. This resulted in him being told to train alone and this statement from Pellegrino himself:
"When I was talking with him, the boy said that he is not available to play because he wants to leave. I need to work with a player that works at 100% to defend Southampton. This is the decision. I had to say: ‘OK, if you don’t want to be involved because you don’t feel OK, you have to train alone until this period of time’ – BBC Sport"
As a result, van Dijk did not travel with the rest of the squad to France for Southampton’s pre-season tour. His links to Liverpool grow stronger everyday with the club expected to make a bid any day now.
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However, it seems that Southampton are still determined to keep the player and have not simply accepted that he should move on.
If a player wants to leave, it is in the best interests of all parties to allow him the move. There is no guarantee that van Dijk will now be committed to his role if he stays at Southampton and issues of him leaving may arise again in the next transfer window and throughout the season. Such drama is distracting.
No team can afford to mistrust a player, especially a key player like Virgil van Dijk is to Southampton. As the captain, his job is not only to play, but to lead his teammates. He cannot do that if he is distracted with wishes for a move. The Saints should let him leave, and sell him for the best possible price while he is in demand.
Next: Is Tottenham's quiet transfer window justifiable?
Liverpool would benefit from a player of van Dijk’s calibre. Although he hasn’t been tested at a top league club, he is still a talented defender. Klopp knows that is an area that needs strengthening in his squad. What remains to be seen is how far Southampton will go to keep him.