Arne Slot has quickly fallen in love with Virgil van Dijk at Liverpool, even being impressed by how the defender trains.
That’s according to Dutch winger Anco Jansen, via FC Update, who has spoken to Slot about the defender and learned he’s already a massive fan.
Jansen was a recent guest on ESPN’s Voetbalpraat programme when he revealed he had been speaking to Slot during the international break.
The pair reportedly took time out to compete on a padel court and it seems Liverpool was a topic of discussion, which is hardly surprising given the flying start to life Slot has enjoyed at Anfield.
Jansen wanted to talk about one player in particular, and that was Van Dijk, who it seems Slot is already a huge fan of.
“Then he said about Van Dijk that he is really an incredibly good football player. He thought it was really good at position games during training,” he said.
“He is now experiencing him up close and said: this boy is not normal when it comes to playing football.
“He didn’t take much initiative at the European Championships. He walked backwards more often than forwards. He didn’t really make a good impression. If you see him now in Liverpool’s new season…”
The big question is whether Van Dijk and Liverpool can maintain the very positive start they’ve enjoyed under Slot so far.
The signs certainly are positive up to now and the way several players have seemingly been reinvigorated by the Dutchman is another hugely positive sign.
If Liverpool are to be successful then Van Dijk will undoubtedly be a big part of it, and it seems Slot is clear on that point as well after watching the Dutchman up close.
