Captain denies relationship had broken down
‘There is frustration because last year was amazing’
Virgil van Dijk has said the connection between Arne Slot’s Liverpool and the Kop remains intact and cited the rout of Galatasaray as evidence of what they can achieve by sticking together.
The Liverpool captain took issue with claims that the team’s relationship with supporters had broken down this season and insisted the focus should be on reaching the semi-finals of the Champions League for the first time since 2022. Scrutiny intensified after Sunday’s draw against Tottenham, when boos greeted the final whistle at Anfield and Dominik Szoboszlai admitted the team had been affected by the sight of supporters leaving early.
“That is a bit of a question I don’t like – I don’t like that tone to be honest,” Van Dijk said when asked whether the connection between Liverpool and their fans had been lost. “In all these years at Liverpool I’ve never ever questioned them and I still don’t.
“There is a reason why there is frustration this season because we had an amazing season last year; we became champions, we had consistent, good football, finding ways to win, and this season we have had so many ups and downs dealing with difficult moments and there has been frustration because we want to perform every three or four days as well. But it is looking ahead and that’s my main focus.”
The support for Liverpool on Wednesday could not be questioned, with Slot’s team receiving fierce backing from almost 60,000 home fans. Only 200 Galatasaray supporters with VIP tickets were in attendance after away fans were banned by Uefa owing to trouble at the club’s playoff fixture against Juventus.
Slot cut an animated figure on the touchline as he reacted to what he claimed were time-wasting tactics by Galatasaray to stall Liverpool’s momentum. Liverpool players also noticeably tried to engage the crowd throughout the 4-0 second leg win. Van Dijk insisted the improved performance and atmosphere went hand-in-hand but denied the team had failed to show such intensity in previous matches this season.
He said: “So we didn’t see it all season? I think occasionally we have been showing and playing good games but not consistently and it’s been frustrating for all of us and for the fans as well.
“It’s a combination of performance and the fans; they play a big part in that. The fans can probably say if we bring that every week on the pitch then there is no issue and we can say if the fans bring that every three or four days then there is no issue either. It is about doing it together.
“This season as players we take full responsibility for a lot of performances when we have not been good enough. But for me there is no point to speak about it after we have qualified for the last eight because that is still a very good thing. Someone told me, for me personally, it is my fifth time in eight years so it’s not a given. When the time is there, when the game is in front of us, we all focus on that.”
Slot hoped the Galatasaray performance would set a standard for the remainder of the season, albeit with the caveat that, with only two full days to prepare for Saturday’s early kick-off at Brighton, a repeat at the Amex Stadium would be difficult. His captain echoed the call for consistency from Liverpool.
Van Dijk said: “We shouldn’t take this team for granted and we are not going to do that. It is on to the next, build on this, build on the next performances. We have been having good performances this season and we haven’t been able to build on it the next time. This was a demanding game physically and mentally and it is down to us to do all the right things to be ready for an early kick-off at Brighton because Brighton away is always difficult. I think last year we lost there.”
Galatasaray have confirmed Victor Osimhen sustained a fractured right forearm at Anfield. Their star striker was injured in the opening minutes and withdrawn at half-time, before going to hospital for tests. Noa Lang also went to hospital with “a serious cut to his right thumb”, according to his club, and posted that surgery went well.
