Virgil van Dijk starred as Liverpool retained their 100 per cent winning record in the Premier League this season courtesy of a 1-0 victory at Burnley. And the Netherlands international then FaceTimed the Liverpool under-13s team after the youngsters won a tournament named after him in his homeland.
Van Dijk has been an ever-present for the Reds this season. The 34-year-old captained his side to victory over Bournemouth, Newcastle and Arsenal ahead of the international break as Liverpool stormed to the top of the Premier League table. And he played the full 90 minutes once again at Turf Moor as Mohamed Salah struck a 95th-minute penalty to clinch a last-gasp victory for the visitors.
The Liverpool under-13s side have been in action in the Netherlands this weekend to compete for honours at the Virgil’s Legacy Trophy tournament.
The two-day tournament was organised by Van Dijk at his former club Willem II and featured 16 teams, with Liverpool overcoming the hosts as well as Bayer Leverkusen and Paris Saint-Germain in the group stages on Saturday.
The Liverpool under-13s side then thrashed Manchester City 5-2 in the semi-finals on Sunday, before beating Feyenoord 2-1 in the showpiece match later in the day.
Van Dijk was clearly proud of Liverpool’s young players following their endeavours overseas.
And he was spotted on his phone after the clash with Burnley congratulating the Reds’ future stars while wearing a green training top and his match shorts and socks.
The centre-back will no doubt have further words of encouragement for the academy players when they return to England.
Following Liverpool’s victory over Burnley, Van Dijk told Sky Sports: “We obviously try to break teams down. We had to be patient and had to be ready. We just kept looking for the goal and the opportunities.
“A well-deserved win, but if I am Burnley it is never nice to concede a penalty. At the end of the day it was a penalty and Mo scored it perfectly. He is a world class player and we know he can deliver in these moments.
“Key today was not to get frustrated. It could have been a draw as well but we take the three points and move on to Wednesday.”
The result at Turf Moor moves Liverpool back to the top of the Premier League table, with Arne Slot’s side ending the weekend three points above second-place Arsenal.
The Reds will begin their Champions League campaign by hosting Atletico Madrid on Wednesday, with Everton then visiting Anfield for the first Merseyside derby of the season next Saturday.