The Liverpool captain praised Brian Brobbey’s form and paid tribute to Sunderland after their Stadium of Light clash
Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk had warm words for Sunderland striker Brian Brobbey after the full-time whistle - and praised the Black Cats as a whole following a fiercely contested Premier League clash at the Stadium of Light.
Van Dijk’s second-half header proved decisive in a tight 1-0 victory that ended Sunderland’s unbeaten home league run this season. Liverpool controlled long stretches of possession, but Régis Le Bris’ side remained competitive throughout, with Brobbey providing a constant physical outlet up front and testing the visitors’ defensive resolve.
After the match, Van Dijk was asked about his fellow Dutch international and did not hold back in his assessment of the striker’s development. “If you use him well, he's obviously a very handful. He's strong, he's fit, much fitter than I think he was over the years. And there's so much more to ask from him, and I'm very, very pleased and I'm happy that he's doing so well for Sunderland.
“Like I said, he's a handful, and 90 per cent of today's challenges Ibrahima had to solve, because he was most of the time with Ibrahima (Konaté). Maybe he got fed up with me defending in the national team, but I'm pleased for him and hopefully he can take that form that he has, because he's in form in my opinion, towards the rest of the season and take it with us to the World Cup. And that's something hopefully he can do.”
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Brobbey spent much of the evening locked in a physical duel with Ibrahima Konaté, and Van Dijk was equally quick to praise his centre-back partner’s display. “He was incredible today. Brobbey obviously was 90 per cent of the time with him, and Brian probably made a lot of defenders’ lives this season pretty difficult, but he did outstandingly. But like the rest of the guys as well, I'm proud of the team.”
The Liverpool skipper also took time to acknowledge Sunderland’s progress under Le Bris and the difficulty of playing on Wearside. “I think in general, you have to give credit to Sunderland in general. With their manager, to play and to get that many points already on the board and be in such a fortress at home, it's a big credit to all of them. For them, I wish them luck for the rest of the season. But it's great to see him (Brobbey).”
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