Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk has rejected Wayne Rooney’s claims that poor leadership contributed to the club’s recent struggles, branding the criticism as “lazy.”
The Dutch defender’s response comes after Rooney suggested that van Dijk and teammate Mohamed Salah had not “really led that team this season” following Liverpool’s difficult patch of four consecutive Premier League defeats.
Speaking after Liverpool’s victory against Aston Villa on Saturday, van Dijk defended his leadership credentials whilst acknowledging Rooney’s legendary status in English football.
“I didn’t hear him last year,” van Dijk said. “It doesn’t hurt me. Just to come back to this particular player, obviously a legend, a big player of the game who inspired so many, I can say only positive things, but I feel that comment is, I would say, a bit of a lazy criticism.”
The 34-year-old centre-back emphasised that success and failure at Liverpool is a collective responsibility, not just down to individual leaders.
“It’s easy to blame the other players but he knows we do it together, trying to help each and every one of us to try to get out of this,” van Dijk explained. “Last year, when things went well, you didn’t hear that at all. It is what it is.”
Liverpool’s season began brightly with five consecutive victories following their Premier League title triumph under manager Arne Slot’s first campaign. However, the recent run of defeats, culminating in a loss to Brentford, has seen the Reds slip behind in the title race.
According to BBC Sports on Monday, former England and Manchester United forward Rooney had raised concerns about the body language of Liverpool’s senior players during the difficult spell.
Van Dijk, however, insisted he harbours no ill feelings towards the former striker, acknowledging that pundits must offer opinions as part of their roles.
“[Pundits] have to do that job. He has an opinion and we have to deal with it. There’s no hard feelings. I don’t take it personally,” the captain said.
The Netherlands international also addressed reports suggesting that manager Slot was under pressure following the losing streak, expressing confidence in the club’s approach.
“I’ve heard the reports as well about [Slot] being under pressure, but I don’t think we play at a club that makes rash decisions,” van Dijk stated.
“We all felt that we could work our way out of this. It’s not a guarantee, but we can do it together. As long as we believe, stay humble and keep working, we can do it, and we all have that feeling.”
Saturday’s victory over Aston Villa provided some relief for Liverpool as they look to rediscover the form that saw them dominate last season. The result suggests the Reds may be finding their way back to winning ways after their worst run of the campaign.
