"An absolute shadow of the player he was": talkSPORT pundit slams Liverpool star and blames him for recent poor form

Liverpool had a rather slow start to the season, dropping points in five of the eight opening fixtures in all competitions.

The Reds are known for their rock-solid defence with Virgil van Dijk at the centre of it.

However, the once impenetrable defence has crumbled, conceding eleven goals in those opening eight fixtures.

Former footballer and current talkSPORT pundit, Jason Cundy, criticised Virgil van Dijk’s performance as a factor in Liverpool’s poor form.

While speaking on talkSPORT’s The Sports Bar, Cundy said: “There’s no doubting how good van Dijk was, but right now let’s call it as it is, Van Dijk is an absolute shadow of the player he was.

“He’s getting overlooked because he’s happy to blame Trent [Alexander-Arnold] and Gomez and Tsimikas comes in. The mainstay right now is van Dijk and he’s nowhere near it.

“What about the challenge on Mitrovic for the penalty against Fulham? Mitrovic turns him, that’s not van Dijk! He squares him up, turns him, penalty.

“Against Napoli, he lunges in and makes a challenge that he doesn’t have to make.”

Van Dijk solidified Liverpool’s defence when he first signed in 2018, but he hasn’t been the same since the start of the season.

Many fans pointed out another error during Liverpool’s 2-1 loss to Manchester United.

Jadon Sancho was in acres of space without being closed down by the Dutch centre back and was given enough time to open the scoring.

Jamie O’Hara came to van Dijk’s defence, saying: “You’re completely digging him out.

"Okay, he might be having a moment but because he’s a colossal guy he has a moment and loses a bit of confidence and all of a sudden, van Dijk’s not a great player.”

Liverpool fans will hope that O’Hara is correct and that he just needs to regain his confidence.

The Reds also just came back from a 2-1 win in the Champions League, restoring much-needed confidence in the side.

They will only play their next game against Brighton in October, giving Liverpool ample time to regroup and get back to their best before the restart.