Not so long ago he was praised so much that he was compared to John Terry, Tony Adams and Nemanja Vidic, but Virgil van Dijk is going through one of the most difficult periods in his career. As at the club level in the Liverpool jersey, so even more so when he performs for the Netherlands with the captain’s band around his arm. After the painful defeat against France (0-4), Dutch football legends Marco van Basten and Ruud Gullit did not spare the captain of the Oranje.It’s true that Van Dijk underperformed, but an even bigger problem, according to Van Basten and Gullit, are his leadership qualities. That is, the lack of those. The subsequent victory over Gibraltar did not change the impression, because as Van Basten claims – leaders are recognized by their ability to lift the team when it is difficult.Virgil, on the other hand, does not communicate with his teammates enough.”He is not clear. A good captain thinks out loud, explains to everyone what is happening. Van Dijk creates chaos. This leads to misunderstandings. As a captain, you have to prevent that,” Van Basten began in a statement to Ziggo Sport and continued.”In the dressing room, he is good, tactically and technically – he is not. This has nothing to do with his injury, this is just about leadership skills. He yells a lot but says nothing. It’s true. You either have it in you or you don’t. It’s that desire to win at any cost”.Orange outrage over Oranje’s overstated obscurityRud Gullit, another legendary footballer, absolutely agrees. And he criticizes the tall defender even more.”Right now he is going backwards. He was already criticized in England. He was in the world class squad of players, now he thinks he is better than the others… We see some things, I think: ‘You are the captain, you have to solve this’. But he hardly comments on what is happening in front of him. I don’t know what he’s doing, but he doesn’t seem to be talking. He plays without risk. Come on now, you’re so big and you’re so good. This is a positive review. Aren’t you the best? Show it”.Van Basten and Gullit were in the team that won the European Championship in 1988 and their words are echo across the nation. Van Dijk could not refrain from publicly asking himself: how useful are such criticisms?”They will not bring me anything. Today, everyone has the right to an opinion. Maybe I’ve raised the bar too high, though I don’t know how that’s possible? I was never perfect. Constant is a better word. They should know better than anyone that footballers have their peaks and valleys. It’s quite normal that you can’t always play the same way. You have phases when you are looking for yourself. People should not forget that. It is normal to make mistakes. That’s football”.🚨 – Gullit: “We [Gullit & Van Basten] are positively criticizing Virgil van Dijk. He is part of the Team of the Year right? He got his nice award right? Then show yourself to us! If he’s still worth it? Everyone believes so, but I don’t.” [@ZiggoSport] pic.twitter.com/G7bVvAD3TR— 𝐀𝐅𝐂 𝐀𝐉𝐀𝐗 💎 (@TheEuropeanLad) March 28, 2023 Van Basten is known as a man who doesn’t hesitate to criticize, but in recent months, Van Dijk doesn’t look like the player who wowed the world when he moved to Liverpool in 2018 and deserved to be considered one of the best stoppers on the planet. He soon won the Champions League and the Premier League, but this season instead of praise – criticism. It was the same in England after Liverpool’s elimination from Real (2-5), followed by a setback in the minimal defeat against Bournemouth…”There are stages in your career when things don’t go according to plan. But if you look at other great stoppers, such as Vidic, Kompany, Campbell, Terry, Jaap Stam… They did not have such big periods of crisis, that they ‘take time off’ for eight or nine games. The form of the team plays a role and sometimes you are as good as the team around you, and his team doesn’t play the way it suits him”, assessed Rio Ferdinand, and Michael Owen followed by reminding that it never suits the stoppers when they have to play ‘one on one’.”When a center defender plays for Liverpool, he doesn’t have much to do, because they win the ball more up the pitch. The problem is that sometimes they leave you exposed, and that’s a complicated situation if the team doesn’t function properly. It is difficult because he has to play ‘one on one’. When he plays well you don’t even notice him, then he just clears all the balls”.These are tough times for Virgil van Dijk.EURO 2024 – QualifiersMondayAustria – Estonia 2-1 (0-1)/Kainz 68, Gregoritsch 88 – Sappinen 25/Hungary – Bulgaria 3-0 (3-0)/Vecsei 7, Szoboszlai 26, Adam 39/Republic of Ireland – France 0-1 (0-0)/Pavard 50/Moldova – Czech Republic 0-0Montenegro – Serbia 0-2 (0-0)/Vlahovic 78, 90+6/Netherlands – Gibraltar 3-0 (1-0)/Depay 23, Ake 50, 82/Poland – Albania 1-0 (1-0)/Swiderski 41/Sweden – Azerbaijan 5-0 (1-0)/Forsberg 38, Mustafazada 65 og, Gyokeres 79, Karlsson 88, Elanga 89/Tuesday19.00: (3.70) Georgia (3.30) Norway (2.20)21.45: (1.25) Wales (6.25) Latvia (15.0)21.45: (6.00) Scotland (3.80) Spain (1.67)21.45: (3.35) Turkey (3.20) Croatia (2.40)21.45: (1.35) Switzerland (5.00) Israel (9.00)21.45: (1.35) Romania (4.70) Belarus (10.0)21.45: (1.18) “Kosovo” (7.50) Andorra (22.0)***odds are subject to change
