Virgil van Dijk and Jeremy Jacquet have begun to form a strong partnership at center-back for Liverpool, while Ronald Araujo has made the right-back position his own
Virgil van Dijk and Jeremy Jacquet.
Virgil van Dijk and Jeremy Jacquet.(Image: Getty Images)
They say that strong defenses are what title challenges are built on, and while it might be a stretch to envisage Liverpool keeping pace with Arsenal and Manchester City this term, Andoni Iraola can be pleased with what he has seen so far.
Returning to his old side, Bournemouth, this weekend, the Spaniard's side won 1-0 thanks to Alexander Isak's goal. Alisson Becker made a good save in the first half, but Liverpool generally did well to manage the game.
Last term, such a resilient performance — solid rather than scintillating — was rare. But Liverpool now looks better suited to grinding out results when it needs to; it remains unbeaten, albeit still a work in progress.
"Clean sheets are always a good sign," Virgil van Dijk told reporters at the Vitality Stadium. "Everyone is playing a big part in that. I know how sometimes it can work, where maybe only the defenders or the goalkeeper get the plaudits for it, but it is down to everyone.
"The guys up front and the midfielders put in the hard work, and it is a great base to build on. There is a lot of hard work we do behind the scenes to not concede chances, let alone goals. So it is down to all of us.
"We have to put the work in and we have been doing it in training, but obviously the games are the most important. Today, we didn't give a lot away.
"There were a couple of shots from distance and the chance Ali (Alisson Becker) saved brilliantly from my view, I think. So overall, defensively, we were solid."
Andoni Iraola before Bournemouth 0-1 Liverpool.
Andoni Iraola before Bournemouth 0-1 Liverpool.(Image: Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
Having kept just 10 league clean sheets in the entirety of last term, Liverpool has now managed three consecutive shut-outs against Ipswich, Fulham and Bournemouth.
And key to that has been the strong partnership that has been brewing between Van Dijk and $83 million (£60 million) summer arrival Jeremy Jacquet from Rennes.
"He has had an excellent start, but we are only in September," Van Dijk said. "I want him to keep working and keep learning. I am sure he will. There is obviously a lot of praise and rightly so, but I know how it works when you play a game not at the standards you have set. So let's just stay calm, keep working, and try and stay important for us like he was today again.
"(The partnership) is still a work in progress. There are still things we can improve but you learn by playing games. I said at the start that you experience things in games and see how each other react to certain moments, and then you adapt to that. It is still a work in progress, but so far, it is good. For him personally, he is 21 years old. He is very promising but it is up to him to keep working hard and stay calm."
Previously, Jacquet has made no secret that Van Dijk is a defender he models his game on. So is he taking the opportunity to learn from his idol in training?
"I hope so!" Van Dijk said with a smile. "Listen, it's all about him and how he adapts to the team and what he brings to the team. It's a big credit to him how he started his Liverpool career, but we are in September. Hopefully there are years of his Liverpool career left. He has to stay calm, keep working hard and keep being important for the team — nothing more and nothing less."
Van Dijk and Jacquet's partnership is not the only thing helping the Liverpool defense. At right-back, Ronald Araujo has slotted in very well, offering a more solid option than Jeremie Frimpong.
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"He is a great player," Van Dijk said. "I don't think he was the captain of Barcelona for no reason. He is a fantastic player. He is not a natural right-back but he has filled in the best way possible and I am pleased for him.
"It has been an intense couple of weeks for him, so hopefully now in this international break, he can get a little bit of rest before the chaos will start when we come back. It is down to the whole team, but obviously he did very well so far."
A more solid defensive platform should allow those in front to click at some point. While Florian Wirtz remains a major talking point and there is more to come from Bradley Barcola, Isak is in good scoring form and Cody Gakpo has started the season superbly. "Any manager that comes to a new environment and a new club needs a bit of time, and the same goes with players," Van Dijk added.
"We work a lot almost every day, and hopefully it works sooner rather than later. It is down to us to get results. At a club like Liverpool, you don't have a lot of time to get results so you have to get the points on the board. We've not had a bad start — we could have done better in a couple of games, but we are where we are. Onto the next."