Liverpool signed a player who would go on to become a club legend during the January transfer window, months after Manchester United snubbed him
Virgil van Dijk leads out the Liverpool team
Virgil van Dijk is a leader in this Liverpool team
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For Liverpool, few pleasures compare to getting one over on Manchester United. Over the past decade, the balance of power in English football's most storied rivalry has tilted firmly towards Anfield, due in no small part to the commanding presence of Virgil van Dijk.
The Dutchman arrived from Southampton in January 2018 for a club-record £75million - a world-record fee for a defender at the time - and went on to transform Liverpool's back line. But remarkably, he almost ended up at Old Trafford just months earlier.
According to his former Southampton team-mate Charlie Austin, Van Dijk was in advanced talks with United during the summer of 2017. The club, however, ultimately chose Victor Lindelof instead, a decision that opened the door for Liverpool to pounce.
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"I remember at the back end of his Southampton career, we were sitting on the bench together at Chelsea away," Austin told talkSPORT in 2022. "I said to him, 'Come on Virgil, what's going on, surely Manchester United must have been in for you? They're a massive club in England.'
"He said, 'Do you know what Chaz, in the summer it was between me and Lindelof - and they went for Lindelof.' Nobody knows that. He told me on the bench and I couldn't believe it. I was gobsmacked."
It is a decision that has come back to haunt United in ways they could scarcely have imagined. Not only has Van Dijk enjoyed a glittering career on Merseyside, he is widely regarded as one of the finest defenders of his generation - and perhaps even of all time.
Virgil van Dijk and Bruno Fernandes
Virgil van Dijk could have joined Man United in 2017(Image: Getty Images)
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Lindelof, by contrast, never truly lived up to expectations during his eight-year spell at Old Trafford. The Sweden international was a regular presence in the first team but failed to provide the authority, consistency and defensive assurance that Van Dijk has delivered in abundance for Liverpool.
In a clear sign of their regret at choosing not to gamble on Van Dijk, United went on to shatter the transfer record for a defender by signing Harry Maguire from Leicester City in 2019. But Maguire did little to soften the sting of that earlier decision.
His form fluctuated wildly, veering from dependable to disastrous and he quickly became labelled as one of the Premier League's most expensive flops.
Virgil van Dijk
Van Dijk has gone on to become one of the best defenders in Premier League history at Liverpool(Image: (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images))
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Still at the club, the England international has since steadied himself and partially repaired a once-fractured reputation, though he has never come close to becoming the defensive cornerstone United hoped they'd signed.
Van Dijk, meanwhile, has firmly established himself as one of Liverpool's greatest ever players. He played a central role in the club's 2018/19 Champions League and 2019/20 Premier League triumphs and became just the third defender in history to be crowned PFA Player of the Year in 2019.
He also finished runner-up in the Ballon d'Or in 2019 and has racked up well over 300 appearances for the club. He was appointed club captain in 2023 following the departure of Jordan Henderson.