Virgil van Dijk is captain of club and country and this is set to be a huge summer in his career, as he attempts to conquer Europe and then adapt to a new Liverpool head coach.
Coming onto the pitch with less than 20 minutes remaining against Canada, it seemed more unlikely than normal that our centre-half would play a goal-scoring role in the match.
With less than 10 minutes left on the clock though, the 32-year-old rose highest in the box and powered the ball home after some lackluster defending.
It was the perfect way to prepare for a Euro 2024 showdown for his nation, with the tournament starting in one week’s time.
You can watch Van Dijk’s goal (from 5:32) via Premier Sports on YouTube:
Ep108 of The Empire of the Kop Podcast: EOTK Insider with Neil Jones🎙️