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October 17, 2020, in the eyes of many people, was the day that Liverpool’s season could start to steadily decline. Virgil van Dijk’s injury in the Merseyside derby was greeted with understandable concern for the defender’s health, as well as what it would mean for the rest of the season.
Over the past few years, Van Dijk has been one of the pillars of coherence that has been vital to the club’s success, bringing four major trophies to Anfield. It was probably a fair statement then to think that the same success may not follow as the Dutchman will not be available for the next few months.
And yet Jürgen Klopp was aware that despite not having his star defender available, he knew that the players at his disposal could still play their part and ensure that the void of Van Dijk’s absence was not too great. . It was never about one player stepping in and taking responsibility, it was the job of every other team member to step up and be counted.
The first signs are that Van Dijk’s absence is not being felt too much, even though there have only been seven games and there are 10 in two competitions from now until the end of the calendar year. It is a testament to the fit players that they have not given in under the pressure and still managed to perform without the Dutchman.
That said, there may well have been a sense of lack of focus while Van Dijk was in the picture. Not in any way resulting in a lack of effort or intensity, just not being as activated on the defensive as perhaps they should have been.
Some of the classic examples of recent months came during the project restart, when, to be fair, the league title was reaped quite early. The home draw to Burnley, the losses to Manchester City and Arsenal each had moments where members of the defense, including Van Dijk, appeared to be playing in second gear.
Van Dijk is a player whose skill outshines all others in his position in world football, and he probably doesn’t need to be in his prime to improve his opponent. The problem is, his teammates may have felt the same way, prompting some pretty tough goals to be let in. You only have to look at the defeat at Villa Park to see the amount of goals conceded that, if each player had been at their best. In terms of concentration levels, he would not have beaten the goalkeeper.
Now that everyone knows that Van Dijk is no longer there to help the team out of trouble from time to time, every player knows that they have to perform and be in the right frame of mind for the full 90 minutes. If all players do this, which so far it seems they are doing, then clean sheets and lack of conceded goals should be the norm.
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In the seven games Liverpool have played since that frustrating afternoon at Goodison Park, they have only let in two goals in open play, as well as a contentious penalty against Sheffield United. When you consider the defensive changes Klopp has been forced to make in that time, that’s a remarkable stat.
If you look at the game against Leicester on Sunday night as the most recent example, you could see that Liverpool were defending as a unit, rather as a group of individuals. Dealing with a prolific scorer like Jamie Vardy isn’t an easy task, but they made it look relatively easy. Of course, if Van Dijk had been there it would have been an easier task, but the makeshift defense is to be given credit for handling what should have been a rough night.
It’s about working as a team and handling threats that come your way as a collective rather than individually. That, in a nutshell, is the backbone of how Klopp wants his team to play. As a team.
The next few weeks will present Liverpool with the greatest test of their defense since Van Dijk’s injury. A 10-game streak between now and the end of the calendar year means not much time to rest and the ability to rotate the team at will.
Liverpool will most likely have to deal with an opponent who scores one, two or more against them, and it is up to the scorers to be in shape when that happens. However, if the players can stay focused on defense in that run, as they have been for the past month, then there is no reason why the club could not be in an extremely welcoming position in the league standings early. of 2021.
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