Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk has hit out at people criticising him ‘for the sake of it’ this season, insisting he has no problem with such comments if they are justified.
The Dutchman has been speaking to Algemeen Dagblad following a difficult campaign for Liverpool that saw them finishing fifth and missing out on Champions League football.
Jurgen Klopp’s side were unable to build on their successes from last season, when they competed on four fronts domestically and in Europe.
This campaign was the polar opposite as they struggled for form and consistency for much of the campaign and ultimately ended up miles outside of the title race.
Van Dijk was one of those who failed to get anywhere near the standard he’s set in previous years, when some lauded him among the best to have played the game.
Criticism has been consistent, to say the least, with big names such as Marco van Basten regularly criticising his performances for the Netherlands and Liverpool.
It seems Van Dijk is sick of that, though, insisting he can take any sort of critique when he feels it is justified.
“Sometimes the criticism was just right, both on the team and on me individually,” he said.
“Quite often but not entirely. But either way; you have to be able to deal with it, and I’m glad I came out of that well. Mentally, that’s not always easy.
“Criticism is just part of it and it’s certainly not a problem if it’s justified. But therein lies a bit of a difference. A footballer knows very well when he has played well or badly, so also whether criticism is justified.
“But it also happens that comments are mainly intended to be effective. That things are said for the sake of saying them. There are so many platforms on which people can express their opinions these days.”
