View: Liverpool boss Arne Slot will be relieved by new update on 95% Virgil van Dijk
Liverpool head coach Arne Slot will be relieved as Virgil van Dijk heads back to Merseyside after being released early from international duty.
The Reds captain will not be a part of the Netherlands squad for their final Nations League group stage match against Bosnia and Herzegovina after the Dutch team secured qualification for the quarter-finals with a 4-0 victory over Hungary.
Oranje boss Ronald Koeman confirmed Van Dijk’s departure, saying: “The schedule of Virgil van Dijk is very busy, so I decided to send him back to Liverpool.”
The Reds have since confirmed this too, adding he will be assessed upon his return.
Virgil van Dijk back to his best for Liverpool
The 33-year-old will return to Liverpool earlier than planned to prepare for the trip to Southampton on Sunday 24 November before huge fixtures against Real Madrid and Manchester City.
The Dutchman has been back to his best this season and has formed a formidable partnership with Ibrahima Konate that has seen the Reds concede just seven goals in 11 Premier League matches.
He has looked like the pre-ACL injury version of himself that nearly beat Lionel Messi to the Ballon d’Or in 2019.
The Dutch defender has won 71.7 per cent of his aerial duels in the league this season and 66.2 per cent of ground duels [Fotmob].
He has also completed 91.4 per cent of passes attempted and plays an average of 76.36 passes per game.
The towering defender was at his best against Hungary last time out, completing 95 per cent of his 125 attempted passes, completing six defensive actions and recoveries, as well as creating a chance [Fotmob].
Van Dijk is out of contract in the summer and with just over a month until he can negotiate with clubs outside of England, Liverpool need to get a move on and get his new deal sorted.
In other Liverpool news, Dominik Szoboszlai impressed for Hungary but must bring that form back to Merseyside.
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