Liverpool were beaten by Crystal Palace on penalties in the Community Shield, with Virgil van Dijk admitting the Reds need to sign a new striker in the final days of the transfer window
11:18, 11 Aug 2025Updated 11:18, 11 Aug 2025
Virgil van Dijk of Liverpool applauds the fans after the team's defeat
Virgil van Dijk wants another striker(Image: 2025 Liverpool FC)
Virgil van Dijk, maintained that the Reds are still one forward short following their Community Shield loss to Crystal Palace, a sentiment not shared by Anfield manager Arne Slot.
The Premier League title holders were defeated on penalties in the traditional season opener at Wembley.
New £79 million striker Hugo Ekitike made an impressive start, netting a goal just four minutes into his competitive debut after his summer transfer from Eintracht Frankfurt, and his link-up play with record signing Florian Wirtz was top-notch.
However, Liverpool were caught out defensively by Oliver Glasner's side - with Van Dijk, somewhat recklessly, twice at fault, once conceding a penalty and then leaving space behind - as they ended normal time with a 2-2 draw before losing on penalties.
Over the weekend, Liverpool sold Darwin Nunez to Saudi team Al Hilal, having previously sold Luis Diaz to Bayern Munich and suffered the tragic loss of Diogo Jota, all three of whom contributed to last season's title win.
LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 10: A penalty is awarded to Crystal Palace after this challenge by Virgil van Dijk of Liverpool on Ismaila Sarr of Crystal Palace during the 2025 FA Community Shield match between Crystal Palace and Liverpool at Wembley Stadium on August 10, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images)
Virgil van Dijk was at fault for both Crystal Palace goals(Image: Marc Atkins, Getty Images)
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It's well known that Alexander Isak is the prime target for the Anfield chiefs, with the Newcastle United striker already being the subject of a rejected £110m bid from the Reds.
Isak, currently excluded from first-team training in Tyneside and not in Eddie Howe's first-team plans, is valued at £150m by Newcastle's hierarchy, reports the Mirror.
While Ekitike and Wirtz certainly impressed, with Mo Salah and Cody Gakpo holding their spots in the starting line-up at Wembley, Van Dijk voiced concerns about the team's attacking prowess in a thinly veiled plea to the club's top brass.
LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 10: Arne Slot manager of Liverpool during the 2025 FA Community Shield match between Crystal Palace and Liverpool at Wembley Stadium on August 10, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Vince Mignott/MB Media/Getty Images)
(Image: Vince Mignott/MB Media, Getty Images)
"Well, we just lost Darwin, he went to Saudi and we lost Lucho, obviously he went to Bayern," he shared with talkSPORT. "I think there's always room for an attacker in order to strengthen us so let's see what the window brings in terms of the balance of the team."
However, in his post-match comments, Slot countered Van Dijk's assertions - and disagreed with his captain. The Dutch gaffer stated: "I think we have more than more than enough options to be good enough to win again.
"This is where I focus on myself. With the players we have we should be able to win, to score. That's actually what we did as well. We scored twice and last season we only scored one against them, away and at home.
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"We could only score one against them. So my last concern at the moment is our offensive quality."
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Slot then served up a somewhat pointed reminder to his skipper, something that felt like a 'stay in your lane' message from one Dutchman to another.
"It's more - it's not a concern - but if I look at the amount of goals we've conceded in pre-season, that's not of our standard."