Andoni Iraola still has plenty of work to do on his Liverpool squad with the new season now just a month away, but the new head coach has been told there's one player he can't afford to lose
19:39, 22 Jul 2026
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - JULY 21: Liverpool F.C. head coach Andoni Iraola speaks during a press conference at the Chicago Fire Endeavor Health Performance Center ahead of his team's pre-season friendly against Leeds United in Chicago, Illinois, United States, on July 21, 2026. (Photo by Jacek Boczarski/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Liverpool head coach Andoni Iraola(Image: Getty Images)
Andoni Iraola has been told he “needs” to keep Virgil van Dijk at Liverpool this summer, or risk further damage to the culture at Anfield.
Van Dijk is expected to return to training with the Reds soon following his involvement at the World Cup with the Netherlands, although it could prove to be his last summer at Liverpool, with just a year remaining on his contract.
The defender has been linked with an exit as Liverpool faces up to its last opportunity to make any money from his sale, with Van Dijk having been touted for moves to Italy and Turkiye amid reported interest from AC Milan and Galatasaray.
The speculation over his future has been dismissed already this summer, but former Red Jason McAteer has underlined the importance of Iraola keeping his captain in place.
Liverpool has already lost two of its most senior players in Mohamed Salah and Andy Robertson, and McAteer feels other departures contributed to the downfall of former head coach Arne Slot.
“I think what’s happened at Liverpool is during the tenure of Jurgen Klopp they didn’t just win things they created a culture within the football club,” McAteer told PariuriX.com.
“Culture is massive. The environment is massive and it’s something that is looked on through with a fine tooth comb in terms of how you create it, how you keep it, what the balance is and what you need. It was created under Jurgen and obviously Arne Slot came in.
Former Liverpool head coach Arne Slot
Arne Slot's downfall at Liverpool has been blamed on the club letting so many of its players leave last summer(Image: (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images))
“My take on that is it’s not just a managerial state of mind that keeps a culture or builds a culture. It’s the players’ state of mind. Think of the players that we lost under Arne Slot, which I think has been the downfall of Liverpool last season.
“I think the culture has eroded. I think we let eight or nine players go from Caoimhin Kelleher and Tyler Morton. Harvey Elliott left for the season, and then on top of that you’ve lost Trent (Alexander-Arnold).
“On top of that you’ve lost Darwin Nunez coupled with the passing of Diogo Jota. And then you bring in five or six new faces who are coming from all different cultures and different environments, who are coming into a winning dressing room and they don’t quite know what the expectation is of playing for Liverpool.
“They don’t know what the expectation is of playing in the Premier League, but also winning Champions Leagues and so you’ve lost nine and you’ve brought six in that you don’t know.
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“You’ve got Andy Robertson who’s not in the team, who feels like a bit-part player, you’ve got Mo Salah who’s leader, who’s in the leadership group who is fighting his own contract talks, and then you’ve got everything falling on Virgil van Dijk’s shoulders, which was just too much.
“And unfortunately human nature is when it’s not going well, you protect yourself, you become insular and you look after your own performances and sometimes it’s very hard to lead a group or a collective when you’re taking a lot of criticism, and I felt that was what happened with Virgil last season.
“And then you’ve got his age. So he took a lot of criticism for the team’s performances, not just his own and I felt it was unjust at times.
Virgil van Dijk of Liverpool in action during the Premier League match between Liverpool and Brentford at Anfield on May 24, 2026 in Liverpool, England
Virgil van Dijk has just a year remaining on his contract at Liverpool(Image: Photo by Jack Thomas/Getty Images)
“I think it is vitally important that he stays at Liverpool for this season. I think he’s got a year left and I think it would be a mistake to let him go. I think Iraola can have him as an ally. How he plays him and how he uses him is down to the manager, but I think Liverpool need Virgil van Dijk from a leadership point of view, not just a playing point of view.”
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Liverpool.com says: McAteer shouldn’t have anything to worry about with Van Dijk this summer. Apart from anything else, it would be sheer madness from Liverpool to let go of one of just four first-team center-backs, especially when he’s so much more experienced than two of the other options.
Van Dijk will be needed to guide the likes of Jeremy Jacquet and Giovanni Leoni in the new season, and any thoughts of him leaving Anfield should be saved for the end of the campaign, by which point we could be bidding farewell to another of Liverpool’s greats.