Liverpool are said to have made a mistake with Virgil van Dijk in the summer as he is “past his sell-by date” and is “declining rapidly”.
Van Dijk and Mohamed Salah signed new two-year deals at the end of last season, keeping them at Liverpool until the end of the 2026/27 season.
It was widely accepted that these extensions were well-deserved as Van Dijk and Salah were in excellent form as Liverpool won their 20th Premier League title last season.
However, Van Dijk and Salah were significantly reduced at the beginning of this season, contributing to Liverpool’s sudden crisis.
Last weekend, Liverpool were underwhelmed with a 3-0 loss to Man City at the Etihad, a result that left the Reds eighth in the Premier League table during the international break.
Read: 5 Liverpool stars who need upgrades and replacements, including Virgil van Dijk and Mo Salah
Now presenter Richard Keys has claimed they made a mistake in the summer by not doing the surgery he really needed while Van Dijk was “declining rapidly”.
“I’m reading Arne Rost’s (Slot) article because I fear Liverpool have already lost their chance at the title. Arne, I have news for you. You have. We can’t win now, not after we’ve already lost five games,” Keys wrote on his blog.
“It was a pathetic defense, but we really shouldn’t be surprised. I’ve always said that Liverpool weren’t great champions last season. Of course I give them credit for winning it, but it wasn’t really difficult. Liverpool weren’t great champions.”
“They stumbled over the line like tired marathon runners. Changes were needed, but they didn’t operate where they really needed to.
“Van Dijk is rapidly declining. His power is not what it once was. He is past the sell-by date and should have moved on, but Liverpool did not sign a replacement.”
More Liverpool coverage on F365…
👉 Liverpool make ‘new offer’ for Reds star as FSG ‘forced to pay £80m’ for replacement
👉 “It’s clear there will be revenge against Liverpool” and other less spiritual views
👉Arne Slott ‘doesn’t know how to solve Liverpool’s problems’ so sacking is inevitable
Keys also explained why he thinks Liverpool’s new players have struggled so far this season.
“They spend all their money on forwards and some of them are just as lost as the coach,” Keys added.
“Those signings will only really confuse Slot. He doesn’t know his best team yet and Arsene Wenger was right when he said on BeINSPORTS last week that[Slot]exploded his midfield by bringing in Wirtz.”
“Wirtz wants to play as a No. 10. Apparently (Slot) told him he could do that. That meant a complete change of system, but it didn’t work. In recent games, (Slot) went back to a more familiar system and lineup, squeezing Wirtz on the left wing, but that didn’t work either.”
“Wirtz shouldn’t have played for City, but[Slot]had to play with him and support him. But that decision cost Liverpool.”
“United, City and Chelsea all won the title after losing six games. Blackburn won the title after losing seven games, but it was a different era.
“Six is the maximum at the moment. That means Liverpool have to play the remaining 27 games almost perfectly. Do you understand that? No, I don’t either.”
