01 May 2023 11:09:59
Ed001 what do you think it is with VVD because it is not a physical thing he looks totally over the injury. He just does not want to make a challenge so for me it is just some sort of mental thing, What makes me think he could come back maybe he needs to see a sports psychologist. But as it stands at the minute he a passenger costing us in every game maybe time out off the team would be beneficial to him and the team and maybe we should start with Phillips as he is the best defender out of the rest of the team.

{Ed001's Note - I don't think he is totally over the injury physically, he looks done for me physically. He looks so slow and mentally he looks afraid. His arrogance is too much to allow him to admit it, so he won't go the extra mile needed to recover from it. Instead he will just hit back at anyone who criticises him.}

1.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 11:36:29
Virgil Van Dijk vs Spurs:

- 5/ 5 Ariel duels won
- 1 Goal line clearance
- 6 Recoveries
- 6 Accurate long balls
- 109 Touches
- 93% Pass accuracy

I think we’re expecting Vvd to be perfect every game and are just focusing on 1 slip. M

Virgil’s overall game has dropped off this season but so have every other players except Allison.

2.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 12:02:45
He needs to sit down with a psychologist this summer. I hope Klopp recognises this too.

3.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 12:05:43
JK23. You’re right that nearly everyone bar Allison has dropped off this season. However, when we say VVD ain’t the same it’s at a concerning level. He is not only slow but he is making some of the most basic errors and the nonchalant approach to one on ones is now getting punished and with ease, whereas before because he was that good it wasn’t. I don’t even blame the guy. The injury has unfortunately ruined him and we need to IMO act fast before other teams catch on. Sell him when his name still carries weight and bring in a reasonable fee for him. Without even selling him I would want Gvardiol in for obvious reasons. Class young centre back who can also cover at left back when required. The fact he is an outspoken Liverpool fan adds to why we should be going all out for him. But if we were to sell VVD this summer I would also be going in for Antonio Silva alongside Gvardiol. 19 years old and already plays like a mature defender and like Gvardiol is super quick and composed. Those two could potentially be our centre back pairing for near enough 12/ 13 years.

4.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 12:12:21
Lies, damn lies and statistics. Virgil hasn’t been the same player, physically out mentally since Pickford injured him. Just so we are clear, the OP didn’t ask what did people thinks about Virgil’s stats against Spurs.

5.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 12:31:17
WDW cheers for your input.

Aren’t you sick and tired yet of telling people what they can and cannot post on here.

6.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 13:05:36
No he's not JK it seems if you don't suit the narrative you get talked down to, see you on the chat ;)

7.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 13:08:33
Jk - I think there’s better out there at good value. I’ve been looking closely at maguire this season, I think he gets a hard time and good be real value. He’d replace vvd easily enough I’d say? He could slot in straight, string in the air good with ball at his feet. What do you others think?

{Ed025's Note - I think you need to say no to drugs.. ?

8.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 13:16:57
Alonso cheers for the response mate.

I’m not trying to defend Vvd and say he’s blameless as he’s had very poor performances this season mate along with the rest of the team.

I thought Robbo and Konate struggled yesterday in and out of possession but they seem to have slipped under the radar. I think if Vvd had been marking Richarlison on his goal rather than Nunez then he would have got pelters for that as well.

Vvd is having his worst season for us but I cannot really remember people complaining about him last season when we were competing on all fronts. And I’m pretty sure last season was after the Pickford injury.

Either way if we are going to replace him then it would need to be with exceptional quality. Personally I’d look to replace Matip and Gomez ahead of him but that’s just an opinion.

{Ed001's Note - you must be living in a bubble as there were a lot of comments about him struggling last season. The difference was people were just putting it down to him needing time to get back to his best after the injury.}

9.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 13:21:51
I think we have all felt this way for a while, but yesterday was something else. The way Perisic sat him down was utterly shocking. That is a million miles away from the player we signed years ago. It’s something you’d expect to see from Maguire or Richard Dunne.

Klopp surely has to be at least contemplating the idea of selling him. I think it’s all about demeanour. Henderson has been crap, but he has also been overplayed. Robertson has been the same. They’ve both been pants but I don’t see their heads dropping or bodies entirely failing, if you get what I mean. Henderson can look sluggish but can also still look athletic, when used sparingly.

What sets Fabinho, van Dijk and Salah apart is that it looks like their heads have dropped. Their body language on the pitch suggests that their bodies are failing and they know it. Salah has been amongst the goals recently but he often looks so frustrated, running in treacle and unable to beat a man.

The whole team has been poor but for me, that is what marks those three out as the ones who should be sold. I think their heads have dropped and they look physically beaten, as well as mentally.

10.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 14:00:27
Ed001 perhaps my mrs is correct then and I do have selective memory. I can’t really remember exactly what she said.

Interesting to see what Klopp does in the summer then with regards to any defensive outdoing and incomings.

{Ed001's Note - it is easy to miss I guess on a page this busy, but I remember editing them as I was thinking the same things. Worrying but it takes time to get over an injury so fingers crossed. Sadly he looks even worse this season and his arrogant reply to criticism showed Maguire-like delusions. When you are being criticised, the way to deal with it is not to shout your mouth off when you are in his position. There is no need. You have the perfect place to shove the criticisms back down the critics throat every time you step out on the pitch. Instead he has just proved them right time and time again by looking a spent force. I mean the stats you posted, yes he won duels, but how many duels did he not get near involvement in because of his lack of positioning and recovery pace?

Just go back and look at the stats on Jose Enrique when we were about to sign him. His defensive stats were outstanding, never beaten on the dribble etc, but that was because he was never actually there to be beaten! If you just looked at his stats though, he would seem like a world class left-back that we were about to sign. Sadly he was barely Championship class, let alone Champions League. Shame because he is such a likeable guy and clearly loves the club, but he is living proof that stats are useless on their own.}

11.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 12:37:49
Alonso cheers for the grown up response and engaging in debate mate.

I’d have no issue with the club selling Vvd and replacing with better but the problem is are there many better proven centre half’s out there. I thought Konate and Robbo struggled yesterday but have seemed to have slipped under the radar.

There’s lots of talk that Vvd hasn’t been very good since the Pickford injury but I can’t remember anyone raising how poor he was during the whole of last season.

Either way I’ll support the guy when I’m at the grounds home and away (I’m not talking about the Aussie soap for any Soccer fans down under) .

12.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 12:39:19
I think their point is they don’t think VVD can get back close to his previous best. We all admit he is a mile off atm. My problem with it is if we are writing off VVD, Fabs, Hendo etc we are going to need 6 players and there’s absolutely no chance of that happening.
I hope with a summer of players like VVD come back fit and firing again.

13.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 14:31:50
Ed001 cheers for taking time to reply and I agree stats can be manipulating (and to some extremely triggering) I literally copied and pasted them on here as a bit of a defence for Virgil (as I thought he was not as bad as Konate and Robbo) even though I’ll happily admit he’s not been at his best.

I think yesterday for the opener he could have def done better for the opener but Robbo (my favourite LFC player) could and should have done better for 2 of them. Also do we think Nunez could have done better for for the third.

I like all of our centre backs (not just Virg) but they’re all probably having their worst seasons for us. Konate has actually played less minutes (due to injuries) than Thiago who we seem to want to sell as fans due to availability issues.

It’s going to be an interesting summer though and I’m sure myself and fellow posters will keep you Ed’s extremely busy for a few months.

{Ed001's Note - but it is not a continous trend with Robbo. He has not turned from arguably the best centre-back in the world to one that looks out of his depth in the Premier League. So having a bad game is not really going to bring out so much criticism until it happens for a lengthy run of games like it has with Virgil.

Konate's injuries are a worry. If it wasn't that Matip and Gomez have the same problem, I would expect more people would be keen to offload him as well. But you can't replace 4 centre-backs in one window and he is young enough to grow out of the injury problems. Potentially.

For me we need to buy a centre-back at least as desperately as we do a midfielder.}

14.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 14:35:24
JB12 you must be mad or on a WUN with that Maguire comment ? VVD is past it but still a load better than Maguire, jeez, welcome to him.

15.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 14:49:56
Virg is done. Doesn’t seem to be able to turn anymore, unwilling the engage in 1 vs 1 duels and no longer has the recovery pace to get back. Either that or he just can’t be arsed or doesn’t trust his body. Either way, I thought he would be ok this year if we got a functioning CB alongside him that he didn’t have to cover at every opportunity. Now he can’t even cover his own side. Sad to say but if we could 30/ 40 mill for him I would take it and try and replace with someone younger.

If he stays he needs to really have a long hard think this summer about the player he wants to be as he moves towards the end of his career. Think he has enough quality to adapt but is too arrogant to do so atm.

16.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 15:09:18
VVD is struggling and has been for a long while now. That is clear for all to see. All you have to do is watch him closely.

17.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 15:18:14
JK23. No worries mate. It’s all opinion at the end of the day. A few did bring it up during the previous campaign. I remember seeing him last season but thought it’s just him being rusty following the injury. But it’s continued into this season and some of the one on ones throughout the season with this laissez faire approach of his has showed he is now human and can’t get away with that approach too defending. Before he could do that and outpace and out muscle near enough any opponent. Now I’m seeing players I wouldn’t expect out pace and out think him. I’m hoping the fact this team has been beyond poor this season and the tactics and formation are leaving him extremely exposed and he comes back next season. Only time will tell on that and having a near enough full strength back to normal VVD would be amazing for the team. Just have this sinking feeling that injury has finished him and age ain’t helping either considering he is 32 in July. That’s why buying Gvardiol this summer is even more crucial. You can play him alongside VVD next season and gage if he is back to his best. If so then that’s the partnership for a number of years. If not, we sell him at the end of next season, move Gvardiol from RCB to his favoured LCB position and sign a new RCB.

18.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 15:19:30
We shouldn’t underplay the psychological part of his injury. I think spending some time with a performance psychologist and putting some muscle back on would restore his confidence in his own body.

I do agree with Ed’s point about what he’s saying publicly. He needs to work on getting himself right instead of all the chat. Virgil’s not the only one in the squad that has been chatting this way (the “we are not robots” schtick), so clearly it’s being reinforced by the coaches.

19.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 13:28:57
Ed’s 25: He needs the drugs to control his illusions ? or delusions. must have missed last pill/ pills.

{Ed025's Note - or it’s Harry’s mum Kew? ?

20.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 16:41:48
He did an interview with the times the other day saying he hasn’t been good enough and the criticism is right.

{Ed001's Note - I haven't seen that but I wouldn't read anything in that rag. It was a sister paper to the S*n.}

21.) 01 May 2023
01 May 2023 19:18:30
Problem is he’s probably still our best defender so what do you do? I’m just glad it’s getting talked about cus when I said late last year the defence not midfield was the issue I got shouted down. Now every page of this site is saying VVD’s done ?.

22.) 02 May 2023
01 May 2023 23:28:44
You buy maguire! He’d make a real difference.