The injury of the brakeman and the leader is a turning point for Liverpool, who are waiting for his return as "a woman waiting for her husband in prison" • Tonight in the Champions League, Ajax are lurking
The moment of Van Dyke's injury.
Can Liverpool succeed without him?
Photography:
IPI
About a month ago Liverpool hosted Lincoln City in League One in the third round of the League Cup.
Virgil Van Dyke started in the lineup, and alongside him completed the defensive squad Neko Williams, 19-year-old Costas Tsimikas and 19-year-old Reiss Williams.
The role of the Dutchman was to be the responsible adult, the mentor, the example.
And really, in the first half Liverpool scored four goals, while Lincoln did not come close to Adrian's goal.
With a 0: 4 advantage at the break, Jürgen Klopp did what was expected of him and took the Dutchman in favor of a rest, and Fabino replaced him.
It was likely that at this point the result did its thing and drew the tension from this game, but it was hard not to see the gaps in Liverpool's defense in both halves.
If in the first Lincoln did not kick the goal at all, in the second the host reached 13 situations and also won twice in a 7: 2 loss.
The champion's defense was so penetrating in those 45 minutes that Lincoln coach Michael Plato concluded: "I'm disappointed with the last 45 minutes, we should have scored five goals."
Of course, it is impossible to build a theory around a negligible game in the third round of the League Cup, but Van Dyke's serious injury in the derby against Everton raises many questions about the consequences it will have, chief among them "how will Liverpool manage without him?"
After all, the Dutch stopper, who arrived in January 2018 for £ 75 million, who miraculously upgraded Liverpool's back, has become the team's leader and one of the most important players on the squad.
Klopp. Looking for solutions // Photo: Reuters
It is clear to everyone how good he is when he is, but it is very difficult to know how bad he would be without him because it almost never happened.
In the two and a half years since arriving at Anfield, Van Dyke has only missed one league game and another has been replaced after 55 minutes with a 0-3 lead.
Last season, for example, he played in each of the minutes in the 38 rounds, and in the Champions League he missed only one game (against Bayern Munich in the quarterfinals in 2019) due to the accumulation of yellow cards.
Now that Liverpool's official announcement has confirmed an operation that will lead to a long absence, any Van Dyke-free game - even one against Lincoln - serves as evidence to bolster fears for its future.
The numbers say that the champion won 75% of the games with the Dutch stopper and only 40% of the games without him, but as mentioned, these figures are far from a conclusion.
Van Dyke almost always played, and when he was already absent it happened in the more marginal trophy factories.
To learn more about his defensive impact one has to compare Liverpool since joining them to the team that was before he arrived.
So here it is: in the 95 Premier League games with which the team conceded 78 goals and kept a clean sheet 44 times, and in the 95 games before it arrived, it conceded 111 goals and kept a clean sheet only 29 times.
Van Dyke, along with Allison of course, cut 33 absorbs during this time and helped add 15 games with a clean sheet.
This is a huge, unequivocal improvement, and it's just part of the Dutchman's contribution to the team.
Van Dyke brought peace, confidence and leadership, improved everyone around him.
He displayed defensive qualities like position, height play, tackle and ball removal, while at the same time providing long dedications, goals with the head and game play.
Everyone is looking for their own Van Dyke
The 29-year-old Dutchman was so good and significant that much thanks to him everyone realized that an attack might win games but a good brake leads to titles.
In the last two years almost all the top teams have tried to get their own Van Dyke - this brake that will solve problems and upgrade the defense immediately.
After being badly damaged by the departure of Vincent Company and the recurring injuries of American Laporte, Manchester City have added Nathan Aka and Ruben Diash at a total cost of £ 100m. Manchester United have poured £ 70m into Harry Maguire, Arsenal have spent £ 30m on Pablo Marie and Gabriel , Chelsea brought in Thiago Silva, and even Leicester invested 30 million on Wesley Popana.It can be said that there is brake inflation in the Premier League, and it is precisely now that Liverpool are the ones experiencing a severe recession.
Gomes. How much does he need Van Dyke next to him? // Photo: AFP
The departure of Jean-Lucerne to Zenith and the fact that the transfer window has just closed leaves Jurgen Klopp with Joe Gomez and Joel Matip as the only natural brakes, Fabigno as backup and the January transfer window as the first lifeline.
The three brakes available to the German are not bad at all and have already proven themselves, but the season opener and the 7: 2 defeat to Aston Villa highlighted the need for a defensive refresh - a task that now seems almost impossible.
True, injuries are part of the game and big teams have successfully dealt with significant setbacks in the past, but in this case the combination of all the variables and data almost makes it believable that there is a defining moment here.
Turning Point.
Jamie Krager claimed that "this injury opens the championship race", while Danny Murphy and Mika Richards agreed that it was a severe blow to Liverpool.
Van Dyke, meanwhile, published a post in which he made it clear that he was concentrating on recovery and trying to get back on the pitches as quickly as possible, while at the same time Klopp sent his own unique message.
"We will wait for Van Dyke like a woman waiting for her husband in prison," the German sang.
Tonight, in the opening of the Champions League against Ajax, Klopp and Liverpool will start the waiting period, hoping it will be as short as possible and leave as little damage as possible.
