Virgil Van Dijk releases injured man after Jordan Pickford’s knee-high lunge … and Peter Crouch joins fans in disbelief as keeper is not booked
- Jordan Pickford made a huge gamble in the early stages of the Merseyside Derby
- Goalkeeper comes out and applauds Liverpool defender Virgil Van Dijk
- Given Side Fusside, Pickford was saved from a potential straight red card dismissal
Virgil Van Dijk was knocked off the pitch in the Merseyside derby after a formidable challenge from Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.
Pickford outscored his goal early in the match and slammed into Liverpool defender Van Dijk in a glass motion, crushing Duchenne’s front knee.
Before Van Dijk immediately fell into a coma and had no choice but to leave the area, the area needed extensive treatment.
Jordan Pickford misses the ball completely and crushes the knee of Liverpool’s Virgil Van Dijk
Pickford misjudged the challenge and planted his weight at full speed on Van Dijk’s feet.
Tension could be seen in Van Dijk’s legs as the scissors gave Pickford speed
Pickford was immediately asked huge questions, who were lucky enough to avoid a red card and penalty kick due to Van Dijk being in an outfield position on the sidelines.
The video assistant referee took a look at the situation, although the ruling Van Dijk was not in a goal-scoring position so a verdict on Pickford could not be given.
With the eyes of thousands of football fans around the world, social media was quickly provoked by the instant reaction.
One user wrote: ‘It’s a challenging leg breaker that has no purpose and it hurts the player.’
The TV camera captured all the corners and showed the full extent of the horror hall
Another added: ‘Side-by-side or not, Pacford should be sent for that disgusting challenge.’
Even Gary Neville, who rarely missed an opportunity to make fun of his former rivals, took to Twitter to present the verdict that Pickford was ‘very lucky’.
Speaking at BT Studios at half-time, former Liverpool man Peter Crouch said: ‘As former players we will tell you, he is facing a potential leg break. It’s horrible.
‘If it happens between pitches they sometimes run away with it because they have to get out. If it happens in the middle of the pitch, it’s an instant red card.
Everton icon Leon Usman, also featured as a studio pundit, added: ‘He’s a terrible face and we don’t want to see him in the game. That’s the end of a career. But it really changed the pace of the game. ‘
Jurgen Klopp had no option but to withdraw Van Dijk, with Liverpool set to return to action in the Champions League next week against Ajax.
He was replaced by Joe Gomez, who was knocked out of the starting line-up by Joe Stun Villa following a 7-2 defeat to Liverpool.
At the time of the incident Liverpool were ahead of the early strike game courtesy by Sadyo Mane returning in the opening minutes.
After Van Dijk’s departure, Evert quickly entered the contest with a corner kick to Michael Keane’s header.
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