Netherlands' defender #04 Virgil van Dijk congratulates Netherlands' defender #15 Micky van de Ven after their team's third goal scored by Netherlands' forward #18 Donyell Malen during the UEFA Euro 2024 round of 16 football match between Romania and the Netherlands at the Munich Football Arena in Munich on July 2, 2024.Netherlands' defender #04 Virgil van Dijk congratulates Netherlands' defender #15 Micky van de Ven after their team's third goal scored by Netherlands' forward #18 Donyell Malen during the UEFA Euro 2024 round of 16 football match between Romania and the Netherlands at the Munich Football Arena in Munich on July 2, 2024.
Netherlands' defender #04 Virgil van Dijk congratulates Netherlands' defender #15 Micky van de Ven after their team's third goal scored by Netherlands' forward #18 Donyell Malen during the UEFA Euro 2024 round of 16 football match between Romania and the Netherlands at the Munich Football Arena in Munich on July 2, 2024. | AFP via Getty Images
Liverpool stars have been reacting to Tottenham Hotspur’s Europa League triumph
Tottenham Hotspur will join Liverpool in the Champions League next season after beating the Reds’ bitter rivals Manchester United in the Europa League final on Wednesday night.
Reds star Mohamed Salah issued a message to Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou after the game, as he took to social media to congratulate the former Celtic boss on his victory. The Tottenham boss famously said back in September that he “always” wins a trophy in his second season at a club - and he proved true to his word.
Salah said on X: “He did say he’d win in his second season. Congratulations!”
Liverpool, Spurs and Arsenal are the three Premier League sides who have confirmed their place in the Champions League next season, with three more sides still to qualify via the Premier League. Those sides will be confirmed after the final game of the season with five teams battling it out for the last three spots.
Virgil van Dijk and Ryan Gravenberch react to Spurs win
After the final, Netherlands star Micky Van de Ven posted a set of images on Instagram with the caption “Statement made” alongside an emoji of a trophy. Liverpool stars Virgil van Dijk and Ryan Gravenberch both liked the post as they reacted with support for their international team-mate. Both players also commented on the post as they both posted clapping emojis in the comments.
The main image on Van de Ven’s post was his stunning second-half clearance from Rasmus Hojlund’s header as he hooked the ball away with an overhead kick. Van Dijk and Van de Ven have played nine times together with the Netherlands, winning six games, drawing once and losing twice. He has also played eight times alongside Gravenberch at international level, winning twice, drawing five times and losing once.
Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher could not resist a dig at United, as he posted on X: “Lads, it’s Man United.” He was pointing to an old comment from former Red Devils captain Roy Keane on how Sir Alex Ferguson motivated his team ahead of a game with Spurs by simply telling his players “lads, it’s Tottenham.”
Van de Ven hopes to emulate Van Dijk
Speaking last season, Van de Ven expressed a desire to follow in the footsteps of Van Dijk by becoming one of the best centre-backs in the Premier League. He said: "I think Virgil was the last couple of years and this year also one of the best defenders in the Premier League, for sure. That is my ambition to be one of the best centre-backs in the Premier League and I will work hard for it to make it happen."
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