Virgil Van Dijk Begins Recovery Training

We want to get hyped, but probably shouldn’t.

Reports suggest that Virgil Van Dijk has started light recovery
training. The star center-back was believed to be out of action for
the rest of the 2020-21 season following his ACL injury picked up
during the Merseyside Derby. He underwent surgery, and has now
begun rehabilitation with a specialist. This will be the first
phase of his recovery. However, while this is a sign of progress,
there is no guarantee that he will return to the pitch before the
end of the season, much as we would like to believe so.

There were measured glimpses of optimism from former Liverpool player-turned-pundit Michael Owen as
well. Speaking to talkSPORT he said, referring to Van Dijk, “He’s a
huge miss, but hey, who’s to say he won’t be back for those big
games at the end of the season?

“A cruciate ligament injury is sort of five to six months if
everything goes perfectly. So you never know. It’s a huge
blow.”

Elsewhere in the center-back universe, Joe Gomez is also
sidelined with no known date of return after his own surgery. With
Joel Matip as the only senior center-back available (and he too can
be injury-prone), many have suggested that Liverpool should be
active during the January transfer window, with a new high-profile defender linked to the club
every week (including a few truly ridiculous rumours). Progress or not, it is
unlikely that Virgil can contribute to any of Liverpool’s campaigns
meaningfully this season, though I would like to be proved
wrong.