Virgil van Dijk 'fumes at Trent Alexander-Arnold again' in Liverpool draw
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Virgil van Dijk was once again frustrated with Liverpool teammate Trent Alexander-Arnold during his side’s 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest, according to Paul Merson.
There seemed to be a similar sense of annoyance towards the right-back from his fellow defender as Arne Slot’s side dropped more points at the City Ground on Tuesday night (14 January).
They went behind to Chris Wood’s early strike, with the forward exploiting space on the Liverpool right, with Alexander-Arnold drifting in-field and behind the New Zealander giving him a clear run.
Van Dijk, not for the only time in the game, was seen waving his arms and gesticulating after that goal, and Merson believes Alexander-Arnold was indeed the target of his ire again later in the first half.
Speaking on Sky Sports Soccer Special (8:24pm), host Julian Warren asked: “I just saw Virgil van Dijk getting a bit unhappy with some of his teammates there Merse, do you know what that was about?”
In response, the former Arsenal man said: “Yeah they’ve been a bit sloppy, Trent Alexander [Arnold] down the right-hand side hasn’t been great so far.
“Then Van Dijk goes to clear a ball, it hits [Elliot] Anderson and just goes across the goal, it could have gone anywhere, lucky enough it goes across.
“And [most recently, Luis] Diaz just blazed over. Got to be a bit more composed Liverpool, they’re a little bit panicky.”
Liverpool will need to look into Virgil van Dijk frustrations
Football Insider Verdict
It is not a surprise that van Dijk has become as animated as this recently when it comes to things not going right for his side.
Liverpool are in an excellent position right now to add to their trophy haul considerably this season as they compete on multiple fronts.
However, they have not been as convincing in the past few weeks as in previous games, and so may be at risk of letting other sides in to take advantage.
Van Dijk is clearly someone who wants to win, especially with this club, and so it is no surprise that may be getting to him.
While that may be understandable, Liverpool must ensure this does not escalate into anything more than some individual expressions, that could create issues for teammates and make the situation even worse.
The fact that these two are both part of the trio of key figures out of contract in the summer may also add an intriguing subplot to this, about what it might say other their stances on their own futures.
In other news, Arne Slot was “incensed” by one incident as Liverpool drew with Nottingham Forest.
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