Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk has faced criticism at times this season, and he said that there have been games in which he feels as though he has let his teammates down
14:03, 17 Feb 2026
Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk is hoping to lead the Reds to silverware this season
Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk is hoping to lead the Reds to silverware this season(Image: 2026 Getty Images)
Virgil van Dijk showed his humility earlier this month by suggesting he had let his Liverpool teammates down at times this season.
The Reds skipper is widely regarded as one of the Premier League's best-ever center-backs, but he has endured some tough moments this term – most recently in the 3-2 loss at Bournemouth, when he fluffed an attempted clearance which led to the home team opening the scoring.
Van Dijk acknowledged that it was always going to be a big ask for Liverpool to retain the title and also hinted that he has found it difficult to operate at his best level after a summer of tragedy.
READ MORE: Truth behind Florian Wirtz and Liverpool after Bayern Munich transfer rumorREAD MORE: Dominik Szoboszlai moment sums up Liverpool star after Real Madrid claim
Diogo Jota's death last July rocked the soccer world and had a huge impact on his teammates, several of whom have spoken this season about the difficulty of dealing with the Portuguese's passing.
“Retaining the title was always going to be difficult,” Van Dijk said earlier this month in quotes carried by Rousing the Kop.
“I’ve not been in a position, by the way, with everything that happened over the summer, to deal with that as a captain.
Van Dijk admitted he has struggled at times this season
Van Dijk admitted he has struggled at times this season(Image: Getty Images)
"I’ve not also been dealing with the transition of having a lot of new players, but in my opinion, I’m doing it in the best interest and the best way I can.
"There has been games where you come out and you think, I’ve really let my teammates down.
"And, you know, that hurts, and that will always hurt. And obviously, I’ve been very lucky and blessed to have not been in a position that I felt like that. But this season, a couple of times I did."
In an interview with Gary Neville on Sky Sports last month, Van Dijk said that he still believes Liverpool could enjoy a successful end to the season as it pursues glory in the Champions League and the FA Cup.
The team is also chasing qualification for next season's Champions League – something which Van Dijk said is crucial.
Article continues below
"I want to play Champions League football and everyone else wants to as well," Van Dijk said. "But going into my last season [of his current contract], I need to play Champions League football, so we're working very hard to make sure that we do that.
"I still feel this season could still be special, even after all the difficulties we had over the summer, during the first part of the season and with injuries. We're in the Champions League, we're in the FA Cup still, so we'll see what happens.
"But we need consistency, we need to work, we need to enjoy it as well, because we are very privileged to be able to go out there every time, represent the club and play good football."