Former Liverpool defender Sami Hyppia has hailed Virgil van Dijk for his impact at Anfield. He believes that the Dutchman may not have the arm-band, but he is a leader in every sense of the word.
The arm-band is currently held by an experienced midfielder in Jordan Henderson, with James Milner acting as his deputy.
“He’s not got the armband, but he has all the attributes of a leader,” said Hyppia.
“You don’t need the armband to be a leader or an important character on the field or in the dressing room.”
“We needed a leader and, when Virgil arrived, he filled that void. In my opinion, Jordan Henderson and James Milner are a good captain and vice-captain, but it’s not enough to just have two – you need maybe four or five.”
“Virgil was a good addition to that and he took the weight off the other two captains.”
“He gives a lot of confidence to everyone, is always talking on the field and makes everyone around him play better.”
“For me, he’s the last piece of the puzzle in the search for the first Premier League title.”
“Attacking-wise, we were going in the right direction, but, in defence, we needed him to close the circle.”
Liverpool will register their ninth straight win if they manage to beat Manchester United this weekend in the Premier League.
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