Virgil van Dijk has spoken of his love for the club and the supporters of Liverpool FC, offering a strong indication of his intention to remain at the Reds beyond his contract expiring in the summer.
The 33-year-old joined Liverpool seven years ago this week in a £75 million move from Southampton, going on to lift every major honour possible under Jurgen Klopp‘s leadership.
Theoretically, Van Dijk is able to begin discussing a move away from Anfield from next week with a foreign club, but all the indications have been of him remaining on Merseyside, not least with his latest comments.
“I love the club, the club loves me,” he told Amazon Prime (via The Times).
“I love the fans, the fans love me and it is a very good foundation to be successful. In my opinion I can play for another three, four years at least at the highest level. We will see what the future brings.”
Of the three out of contract players, Van Dijk has always been deemed the most likely to stay in the eyes of most supporters, with Mohamed Salah also now looking likely to stay having also spoken of his desire to remain at the club.
Now captain of the club, Van Dijk is working alongside compatriot Arne Slot and seeking to become the first Dutchman to lift the Premier League title as skipper.
“It’s not about me but I would love to be the first one [Dutch player],” Van Dijk added. “I think it is there. That is what we work for as a team.”
“Very likely” Van Dijk and Salah stay
Meanwhile, a Sky Sports journalist, Dharmesh Sheth, has given his view that “it looks very likely at the moment, that Salah and Van Dijk will stay.”
On Trent Alexander-Arnold, Sheth adds: “I’m not saying Alexander-Arnold won’t stay. It’s just that his one hasn’t been made as public as Salah and Van Dijk.”
There appears to be growing confidence that both Salah and Van Dijk will sign contract extensions, which in turn could help in persuading Alexander-Arnold that his future is best served at Anfield, working alongside the best in the world and further adding to his trophy collection and legacy at the club.
