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Alan Shearer raves about £220k-a-week Liverpool man’s display vs Chelsea
Alan Shearer was left very impressed with Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk during one particular moment of Sunday’s Carabao Cup Final before he went on to win the trophy for the Reds at Wembley.
Jurgen Klopp’s side were ravaged by injuries heading into the game and lost midfielder Ryan Gravenberch in the first half.
However, for BBC Sport, Shearer was impressed with the Dutch talisman during the first half of the match.
Shearer praises Van Dijk’s impact for Liverpool
Klopp was dealing with 11 senior injuries heading into the game and Gravenberch was stretched off to add his name to the list of unavailable players.
Thankfully, captain Virgil van Dijk was available and lined up alongside his preferred centre-back partner Ibrahima Konate.
The impressive Conor Bradley started at right-back but was pushed further up the pitch to accommodate Joe Gomez who came off the bench for Gravenberch.
The Northern Irishman was influential throughout the match, but it was one moment from Van Dijk that caught Shearer’s attention just before the break as he played a key part in one of Liverpool’s best chances.
Without the attacking trio of Mohamed Salah, Diogo Jota and Darwin Nunez, it was always going to be interesting to see where the goals came from for the Reds.
Van Dijk influential at both ends of the pitch
Speaking about the defender, Shearer said: “That was brilliant play from Virgil van Dijk to set Liverpool on their way then with a really well-timed tackle on the edge of his own box.
“And they go straight up to the other end and two or three players had the opportunity to shoot.
“But all of them passed it up and it ended up with Bradley having the shot.”
The average age of Liverpool’s bench in the Carabao Cup final was under 19 years old, meaning Klopp had to rely on the senior players who started to lead the squad.
As Shearer points out, Van Dijk was having a fantastic game at both ends of the pitch for Liverpool.
He thought he put his side in front with a phenomenal header, but his effort was ruled out by VAR for offside.
However, the Dutchman had the last laugh, nodding in Konstantinos Tsimikas’s corner in the final minutes of extra-time to win the Carabao Cup for Liverpool.