Ex-Man United defender claims “the big teams in Holland didn’t want to buy” Reds star | OneFootball

Former Manchester United defender Jaap Stam has stated that there was a time that “the big teams in Holland didn’t want to buy” centre-back Virgil van Dijk.

Stam has stated that when Van Dijk was playing in Holland, no one viewed him as a top centre-back.

With that being the case, Stam believes that is why none of the big clubs in Holland signed him. That ultimately saw Celtic sign the Dutchman in 2013. That move eventually led him to Liverpool in 2018.

“It’s very good to see another Dutch defender going to that height and developing himself a certain way because with Virgil as well in the beginning of his career, even when he played in Holland for Groningen, nobody believed in him or looked at him as a top defender,’ Stam told ESPN FC, as quoted by Metro.

“The big teams in Holland didn’t want to buy him and then he made the choice to go to Scotland to play for Celtic. His development over there was great playing in a different league, a very tough league, good players, becoming a better player for himself for the team.

“It also helps as well the players that you’ve got around you, they need to help you out at certain times as well to become a better player so you can learn and you can express yourself a lot more.

“Then he made the step to the Premier League to Southampton, again, tough league, better league than the Scottish league, better players around him, also against him, and of course is great development and tells you something about him, how he is as a person, as a player.

“It needs to be in yourself as a player that you want to develop yourself, you need to learn from situations that you’re in, and he’s done that.

“And now at Liverpool again, big step, big club, a lot of quality players, he’s a big leader in that team but of course, the other players around him help him out as well.

“It’s a very good combination and it’s good to see that he’s also performing in the national team as well.”

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ANFIELD WATCH VERDICT

It is crazy to think that none of the big teams in Holland saw Van Dijk’s potential. This is a player that was the runner-up in the 2019 Ballon d’Or. That backs up the argument that he is a star of the game.

Former Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers was actually interested in Van Dijk back in 2013. The Dutchman was still playing in Holland at the time.

However, Rodgers was denied the opportunity to sign Van Dijk by the club. It is a shame that the club did not sign him back then, as his market value was much lower.

When Celtic signed Van Dijk in 2013, he only cost them €2.75 million. Liverpool paid €84.65 million in 2018 for Van Dijk’s services.