Will Virgil van Dijk Be Back To His Best This Season?
Virgil van Dijk has undoubtedly been the best centre-back in the world since arriving at Liverpool in 2018.
His positional awareness, footballing ability and coolness under pressure were unmatched as he looked to control every situation under the sun on the football pitch.
While his reign of dominance in defence has been a brilliant watch for Liverpool fans, the Dutch national team captain dipped heavily last season alongside a struggling Liverpool side that missed out on the UEFA Champions League places for the first time since 2017.
Conversations on whether van Dijk had taken a step back were rampant as he looked nothing like the van Dijk Liverpool have been accustomed to watching during his career at Anfield.
However, with the new season underway, fans are eager to know whether the new Liverpool captain will be back to his best this season.
Last Season Was A Blip
It's easy to chalk up Liverpool's season last year to just a wild and unpredictable event that won't happen again but it must be studied.
Virgil van Dijk has been the leader of the defence since he arrived at the club in 2018 but he looked anything but a leader throughout the entire season.
Granted, the defence was not helped by the midfield which was the biggest reason for the club's downfall and demonstrated by the rebuild that it's undergone this summer but van Dijk is not without fault.
He invited too much pressure against attackers rather than challenging them and attempting to tackle them which did not work as he thought it may have.
His dip in form looked more mental rather than physical which is a positive considering you can work on your psyche but when a physical decline becomes apparent, it's the beginning of the end.
He Has A Competent Midfield Ahead Of Him
The 32-year-old has come into the new season assured by the new midfielders he has playing ahead of him, giving him and his defensive teammates the protection they've been sorely missing for the last two seasons.
Alexis Mac Allister's ability to control games and Dominik Szoboszlai's penchant to run box-to-box effectively will no doubt ease van Dijk's mind this season and despite the red card he suffered against Newcastle, it has so far been an encouraging start for Liverpool's first non-British captain since Sami Hyypiä.
With van Dijk expected to return from his suspension soon, do you think he'll be back to his best this season?