The Premier League's reigning title-winning captain, Virgil van Dijk, was wrong to have been offered a new contract at Liverpool. That is according to controversial TV presenter Richard Keys.
Despite leading his team to a dominant second title Van Dijk has dropped off this season, as have many of Arne Slot's men, and focus is being placed on the senior players at the heart of Liverpool's issues.
But Van Dijk, along with Mohamed Salah, was offered a new deal earlier this year with just a few months left before he could have gone for free. The subsequent title defence with the pair has so far failed miserably, though, and the Reds are sitting in eighth place after 11 games.
Keys: Van Dijk 'Past His Sell-By Date' at Liverpool
MixCollage-11-Nov-2025-01-28-PM-9180
The 34-year-old penned terms until 2027 after an imperious season at the heart of Slot's backline but has looked anything but impenetrable of late. He is not looking like a huge-salary demanding player right now but certainly was in April.
He was part of the team which were beaten comfortably by Manchester City on Sunday and has started all of their seven defeats in the past 11 games across all competitions but also deservedly lifted the Premier League trophy as skipper in May.
After five wins from five to start the campaign, Liverpool have gone off the boil with Salah and Van Dijk's struggles among the many issues facing Slot. The Dutchman is attempting to work around a host of new signings and out-of-form stars but Keys believes Van Dijk is over the hill and should have been sent packing before it got to this.
Writing in his blog, the former Sky Sports broadcaster (now at beIN Sports) said: "Van Dijk is fading fast. His powers aren’t what they once were.
"He’s past his sell-by date and should really have been moved on, but Liverpool didn’t sign a replacement. They spent all their money on forwards, some of whom look as lost as their coach."
Keys is no stranger to putting out hot takes on the net and is known for going big on most trending topics. However, it's not as if Liverpool did not consider their options before committing to Van Dijk or that this is purely the benefit of hindsight, even if it much easier to say with knowledge of what has happened.