🔗 Share this article A Shadow of His Commanding Persona - Van Dijk Grapples With Decline The unforgiving attention that has been trained on one global Liverpool icon shifted to another on Anfield's fresh desperate night. Mohamed Salah has come under fire for his poor form this campaign - and was relegated to the bench for the consecutive Premier League game as Sunderland visited on Wednesday. But it was skipper Virgil van Dijk, a unmatched defensive bedrock as Liverpool have swept up the array of major prizes, whose struggles became the focus during the draw. The Veteran Duo and Renewed Terms Van Dijk, 34, and Salah, 33, both signed lucrative new two-year deals in the summer, with not one Liverpool question asked at the prospect of handing contracts to a experienced stars much approaching the end of their careers than the start. Truly, it was a cause of celebration - but now there is no denying the brutal reality that performance has dipped concerningly for both. A Leaky Defense and A Costly Refit Liverpool have been susceptible in defence ever since head coach Arne Slot and the club's scouting department began a £450m summer refit that has not yet shown anything like a good return. Concurrently, Van Dijk has started to forfeit the air of invincibility he has held since his £75m switch from Southampton in January 2018. Van Dijk has not been helped by center-back colleague Ibrahima Konate's dramatic dip, along with Milos Kerkez not finding his feet at left-back. But the esteemed defender has also fought his own battles, as proved by his desperate handball that gave away a penalty in the heavy Champions League loss to PSV Eindhoven at Anfield. A Moment That Symbolized The Struggle It was exemplified in the 67th minute on Wednesday when Chemsdine Talbi gave Sunderland a merited lead, Van Dijk surrendering the ball before standing off and averting his body on a 25-yard shot that struck him and looped out of the reach of goalkeeper Alisson. For a defender of such undoubted greatness, Van Dijk has an unusual habit of turning away on the ball, sometimes to Liverpool's disadvantage. Bad luck at the conclusion, yes, but it was a situation Van Dijk provoked with his uncharacteristic failure to make a decisive move, Sunderland's Talbi capitalising. "Van Dijk gives the ball away and then he just backs off. It's the wrong decision. He needs to go to the ball. Him not making the decision means that no one else knows what to do." "Virgil Van Dijk last season was impeccable. Every game he was commanding, but right now he's making mistakes and second-guessing himself." Performance Metrics and A Lack of Command As with Salah, a player of Van Dijk's pedigree must not be written off after winning two Premier Leagues, the Champions League, the FA Cup and two EFL Cups in a illustrious Liverpool career. He has, though, looked a pale imitation of his usual commanding presence this season, with the worst recoveries per game during his Liverpool career, while key defensive stats are also down on last season. And, while leadership should not be Van Dijk's exclusive domain alone in a Liverpool team brimming with experience, it was missing here. No-one was inspiring a team that once again looked lost to take control by the scruff of the neck. Van Dijk's subpar showing, which ended with him being used as the desperate measure of acting as an emergency striker, was indicative of a horribly mediocre Liverpool performance - which made Sunday's win at West Ham seem like the exception rather than the rule. Liverpool Without Spark Slot persisted with the side that stopped a run of nine losses in 12 games at London Stadium, Salah once more starting on the sidelines. The Egyptian came on at the start of the second half as the Kop pinned hopes on him for inspiration. It never came, with £125m Alexander Isak also quiet after opening his account with his first league goal for Liverpool on Sunday. Slot would have been under increased scrutiny had Florian Wirtz's 81st-minute shot not taken a deflection off Nordi Mukiele to set up what Liverpool hoped would be a grandstand finish. Late drama came - but at the other end. Liverpool were only saved from humiliation in stoppage time when Federico Chiesa's superb tracking back allowed him to turn Sunderland substitute Wilson Isidor's shot off the line after he had rounded keeper Alisson. Credit Due and The Road Forward Slot and his struggling title-holders ultimately had to accept the point knowing it could have been worse, with Alisson fortunate to turn Trai Hume's shot onto the bar in the first half before Omar Alderete headed against the post after the interval. Liverpool were slow, labored and lacking in ideas. Even the customary late surge after the equaliser carried little conviction. Performances like this are the reason their title defence has crumbled. But significant praise for the Reds' struggles on Wednesday must be given to Sunderland, who are being rewarded for a summer of clear intent in the transfer market, coupled with the superb management of Regis le Bris. The Black Cats were positive, self-believing and threatening. Sunderland are now sixth in the Premier League with 23 points. It is symptomatic of the manner in which they have embraced life in the Premier League that they will be disappointed they left Anfield without adding two more to their tally. For Slot and Liverpool, it is time for reflection.
The unforgiving attention that has been trained on one global Liverpool icon shifted to another on Anfield's fresh desperate night. Mohamed Salah has come under fire for his poor form this campaign - and was relegated to the bench for the consecutive Premier League game as Sunderland visited on Wednesday. But it was skipper Virgil van Dijk, a unmatched defensive bedrock as Liverpool have swept up the array of major prizes, whose struggles became the focus during the draw. The Veteran Duo and Renewed Terms Van Dijk, 34, and Salah, 33, both signed lucrative new two-year deals in the summer, with not one Liverpool question asked at the prospect of handing contracts to a experienced stars much approaching the end of their careers than the start. Truly, it was a cause of celebration - but now there is no denying the brutal reality that performance has dipped concerningly for both. A Leaky Defense and A Costly Refit Liverpool have been susceptible in defence ever since head coach Arne Slot and the club's scouting department began a £450m summer refit that has not yet shown anything like a good return. Concurrently, Van Dijk has started to forfeit the air of invincibility he has held since his £75m switch from Southampton in January 2018. Van Dijk has not been helped by center-back colleague Ibrahima Konate's dramatic dip, along with Milos Kerkez not finding his feet at left-back. But the esteemed defender has also fought his own battles, as proved by his desperate handball that gave away a penalty in the heavy Champions League loss to PSV Eindhoven at Anfield. A Moment That Symbolized The Struggle It was exemplified in the 67th minute on Wednesday when Chemsdine Talbi gave Sunderland a merited lead, Van Dijk surrendering the ball before standing off and averting his body on a 25-yard shot that struck him and looped out of the reach of goalkeeper Alisson. For a defender of such undoubted greatness, Van Dijk has an unusual habit of turning away on the ball, sometimes to Liverpool's disadvantage. Bad luck at the conclusion, yes, but it was a situation Van Dijk provoked with his uncharacteristic failure to make a decisive move, Sunderland's Talbi capitalising. "Van Dijk gives the ball away and then he just backs off. It's the wrong decision. He needs to go to the ball. Him not making the decision means that no one else knows what to do." "Virgil Van Dijk last season was impeccable. Every game he was commanding, but right now he's making mistakes and second-guessing himself." Performance Metrics and A Lack of Command As with Salah, a player of Van Dijk's pedigree must not be written off after winning two Premier Leagues, the Champions League, the FA Cup and two EFL Cups in a illustrious Liverpool career. He has, though, looked a pale imitation of his usual commanding presence this season, with the worst recoveries per game during his Liverpool career, while key defensive stats are also down on last season. And, while leadership should not be Van Dijk's exclusive domain alone in a Liverpool team brimming with experience, it was missing here. No-one was inspiring a team that once again looked lost to take control by the scruff of the neck. Van Dijk's subpar showing, which ended with him being used as the desperate measure of acting as an emergency striker, was indicative of a horribly mediocre Liverpool performance - which made Sunday's win at West Ham seem like the exception rather than the rule. Liverpool Without Spark Slot persisted with the side that stopped a run of nine losses in 12 games at London Stadium, Salah once more starting on the sidelines. The Egyptian came on at the start of the second half as the Kop pinned hopes on him for inspiration. It never came, with £125m Alexander Isak also quiet after opening his account with his first league goal for Liverpool on Sunday. Slot would have been under increased scrutiny had Florian Wirtz's 81st-minute shot not taken a deflection off Nordi Mukiele to set up what Liverpool hoped would be a grandstand finish. Late drama came - but at the other end. Liverpool were only saved from humiliation in stoppage time when Federico Chiesa's superb tracking back allowed him to turn Sunderland substitute Wilson Isidor's shot off the line after he had rounded keeper Alisson. Credit Due and The Road Forward Slot and his struggling title-holders ultimately had to accept the point knowing it could have been worse, with Alisson fortunate to turn Trai Hume's shot onto the bar in the first half before Omar Alderete headed against the post after the interval. Liverpool were slow, labored and lacking in ideas. Even the customary late surge after the equaliser carried little conviction. Performances like this are the reason their title defence has crumbled. But significant praise for the Reds' struggles on Wednesday must be given to Sunderland, who are being rewarded for a summer of clear intent in the transfer market, coupled with the superb management of Regis le Bris. The Black Cats were positive, self-believing and threatening. Sunderland are now sixth in the Premier League with 23 points. It is symptomatic of the manner in which they have embraced life in the Premier League that they will be disappointed they left Anfield without adding two more to their tally. For Slot and Liverpool, it is time for reflection.