The account is still open: behind the meeting between Virgil van Dijk and Ajax
The Dutch stopper has not forgotten Ajax's decision to give up his signing, and after the small revenge he achieved at the beginning of his career and the painful missed opportunity for real revenge, he attacks the opponent he is most waiting for
Michael Yochin
13/09/2022
Tuesday, September 13, 2022, 2:00 p.m
Share on Facebook
Share on WhatsApp
Share on Twitter
Share by email
Share in general
Comments
Comments
Summary clip of the day in sports, 12.9 (Sport1)
"I would like to see Mark Overmars now," said Virgil van Dijk after signing for Liverpool at the beginning of 2018. This feeling of victory is understandable, because the stopper forced the man who did not believe in him to eat the cap with a lot of salt.
Even when he arrived at Anfield, he still had the anger and frustration with the fact that Ajax gave up the possibility of signing him too easily, without thinking twice.
And the story that was so was.
In the 2012/13 season Van Dijk experienced his breakout season in the Dutch league.
For years, he was neglected in his youth at Willem II's academy, where he was not seen as having the potential to become a professional footballer.
Until the age of 19, he was dried up in the youth teams, where he often took part in games in two age groups on the same day, and was physically exhausted.
The people of Croningen, led by Martin Koeman, the father of Ronald and Irwin, tracked him down and gave him a chance.
After overcoming a severe appendicitis that spread to his kidneys and threatened his life, Van Dijk regained consciousness and began playing very effectively in the center of defense on a weekly basis.
At the age of 22, he felt it was time to take a step forward, and Croningen really didn't object - she needed the money from selling it.
Celtic then made an offer, but Van Dijk was in no rush to accept it.
He wanted to stay in the Netherlands, and believed that Ajax would be the best place for him to develop professionally.
That's why he made great efforts to move to Amsterdam, and not only his agent was involved in the matter.
The brakeman made personal contact with sporting director Obermars and explained to him how far he wanted to go.
Even Hans Nyland, the sporting director of Groningen, called him and claimed: "Mark, this is your chance. It's now or never."
historical miss.
Virgil van Dyck in Groningen (Photo: GettyImages, VI Images)
And Ajax needed a brake that summer.
Toby Alderweireld was on his way to Atletico Madrid, a year after fellow Belgian Jan Vertonghen signed for Tottenham.
Obermars, who later proved to have very developed senses in the transfer market and generally knew the true value of players, was still relatively inexperienced at the time - he got the job in Amsterdam in 2012.
He always liked to do things his way and trusted his scouts.
The people of Croningen had less influence on him.
"I'm sorry, but we've already agreed on a better brake," he replied.
It was Mike van der Hoorn, Utrecht's new star, who was a year younger than Van Dijk.
He was also more expensive than him.
Ajax paid about 4 million euros for him, while Van Dijk went to Celtic with a price tag of "only" 3 million euros.
For him, it was a burning insult, and he didn't really understand why he was disqualified, but neither Eindhoven nor Feyenoord were enthusiastic about the possibility of signing him.
Perhaps if Ajax had paid a little more attention to his performance when Groningen kept a clean sheet against them in a 0:1 victory against Vertonghen and Alderweireld in October 2011, it would have ended differently, but in the scenario set Van Dijk left Holland earlier than he planned.
In retrospect, he had no reason to regret it, of course.
The first opportunity to show Obermars how wrong he was, the defender got right after he moved to Scotland, because Celtic and Ajax were drawn in the same house in the Champions League.
In the butchery battle in Glasgow, he had the upper hand, among other things thanks to Biram Kiel's only goal in the European factories.
The strong kick of the Israeli midfielder was deflected in, the green-whites won 1:2, and also in Amsterdam Van Dijk played excellently in a 1:0 loss.
Van der Hoorn, by the way, sat on the bench in the two meetings in question.
He never settled in at Ajax, moving on to Swansea, and recently returned home to Utrecht.
More in Walla!
The pictures are just PR: the real achievement of the James Webb Telescope
In cooperation with "Hatechonologit", the technology division of Bank Hapoalim
A little revenge.
Van Dijk in Celtic uniform against Ajax (Photo: GettyImages, VI Images)
It was satisfying, but the real "revenge" was achieved several years later.
Van Dijk moved to Southampton in 2015, proved himself in the Premier League, and became the most expensive stopper in history when Liverpool paid 75 million pounds for him. The dizzying success of Jurgen Klopp's team catapulted him to the status of one of the best players in the world, he won the Champions League in -2019 and in the English Championship in 2020, then the longing to see Obermars' face up close grew stronger.
And it did happen... well, almost.
Liverpool were placed with Ajax in the group stage of the Champions League in the fall of 2020. Before the meeting, the Dutch media discussed many of its spicy aspects, and the stopper himself was looking forward to visiting the Amsterdam Arena.
Then, just 4 days before the exciting game, he tore ligaments in his knee, colliding with goalkeeper Jordan Pickford in the derby against Everton.
That's how the Dutchman's season ended, and Liverpool entered a crisis, even if they won the two games against Ajax without him without conceding.
For van Dijk, it was extremely disappointing, and it seemed that fate was laughing at him a little.
However, maybe now fate will compensate him.
Two years passed, and Liverpool were again drawn against Ajax in the group stage of the Champions League.
This time it's even better, because the stands will be full of people unlike during the Corona period.
Overmars already left at the beginning of the year when it was revealed that he sexually harassed women who worked at the club, so the direct meeting with him will not take place, but Van Dijk will be very happy to beat Ajax anyway.
The account opened in 2013 is still open for him, and this is his first match against the Dutch flagship on a big star standard.
A problematic start to the season.
Van Dijk (Photo: GettyImages, Quality Sport Images)
A shot of this kind of motivation won't hurt him in any way these days, because the Dutchman hasn't shone so far at the beginning of the new season, to put it mildly.
This was particularly evident in a very disgraceful defensive display in Napoli last week, when the result should have been even higher than 4:1.
Van Dijk wasn't the only slouch, of course.
Joe Gomez caught the weak half of his life, and Trent Alexander-Arnold sometimes behaved as if he was on an evening trip to the beach instead of guarding the opposition players, but Van Dijk should be the leader who brings everyone back into focus, which is not the case.
Just the opposite - the Dutchman himself too often presents a sloppy game.
When he failed to properly block Jadon Sancho's kick in the justifiable defeat to Manchester United at Old Trafford, the Dutchman was screamed at by James Milner, something we haven't seen in previous seasons.
Is he satisfied with the successes?
Does the drive to win every game no longer exist?
Is this a passing crisis, or the beginning of the decline at the age of 31?
Liverpool would like to believe that the first option is correct, and the battle against Ajax may be the right remedy.
"Each of us must rise," Van Dijk stated.
Now it's time to celebrate.
Who is the athlete of the year?
Artyom Dolgofiat
Blessing Afripa
Danny Avdia
Omar Azili
Maru Tefri
Jonathan Kapitolnik
3087 participants
Who is the athlete of the year?
Hanna Knyizba Minenko
Luna Chamtai
Anastasia Gorbenko
Raz Hershko
Timna Nelson Levy
Daria Atmanov
2426 participants
sport
world football
English League
Tags
Virgil van Dyck
Liverpool
Ajax