The latest edition of the Merseyside derby had everything. Heading into the match, this clash already carried more weight than did any other iteration of an Everton-Liverpool match in a long time. Everton's decisions to hire legendary head coach Carlo Ancelotti and sign 2014 World Cup Golden Boot winner James Rodríguez have clearly paid dividends. The Toffees have now established themselves as a genuine force in the league and could potentially have their best league campaign since 2004-05, when they finished fourth.
This time around, the highly eventful encounter between the city rivals ended in a 2-2 draw. Dominic Calvert-Lewin scored Everton's equalizer to keep the club in first place in the Premier League, while what initially seemed to be a winning goal for Liverpool courtesy of Jordan Henderson was waived off by way of VAR. Just to add to the drama, Everton striker Richarlison also received a late red card.
And yet, in spite of all these events, probably the most notable incident of the match took place early in the first half. A dangerous tackle by Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford left Liverpool's ace defender Virgil van Dijk severely injured. It would later be found out that van Dijk had suffered a torn ACL and would almost certainly miss the rest of the season.
It cannot be overstated just how devastating a blow this is to Liverpool's season. In 2018-19, van Dijk was clearly the best player on the team and the driving force behind the Reds' victorious Champions League campaign. If not for a miracle shot by Vincent Kompany, Liverpool would have claimed a Premier League and Champions League double that season. Van Dijk, who was almost certainly robbed of a Ballon d'Or despite the finest season by a defender since Fabio Cannavaro's effort in 2006, backed up his breakout season with equally brilliant play at the back during the following season. Liverpool romped to an easy league title victory - their first in 30 years.
Van Dijk has clearly established himself as the best player on this Liverpool team and the best defender in world football. He has been that since around the midway point of the 2018-19 season. As of right now, the gap between the Dutchman and most of his closest competition is massive. Realistically, only Bayern Munich defender Joshua Kimmich and van Dijk's teammate Trent Alexander-Arnold are even in the discussion.
Van Dijk also brings the intangible advantages to Liverpool. Although Henderson may be Liverpool's captain, van Dijk is their unquestioned leader on the field. His leadership, intelligence, and in-game savvy combined with his outstanding play have allowed him to strike fear into any strikers who dares to challenge him.
This injury is a crushing blow to Liverpool's season. Van Dijk is a force who is truly irreplaceable. His injury hands the status of Premier League title favourites to Manchester City. It also knocks them out of the group of leading Champions League contenders alongside Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich, and Real Madrid; I'd have put them in that tier before the injury.
The bad news doesn't stop there for Liverpool fans. There have to be questions raised about how van Dijk will perform upon his return. A torn ACL is arguably the most devastating injury in sports. Long-time Liverpool fans will recall the fact that former Reds superstar Michael Owen was never the same after suffering the same injury. Other players such as Robert Pires, Radamel Falcao, and Jakub Blaszczykowski saw their careers derailed by ACL tears. If van Dijk returns as a shell of himself, Liverpool might not be a Champions League contender for quite some time.
Apart from a 3-0 Champions League semifinal first-leg deficit against Barcelona in 2019, this van Dijk injury is probably the most severe adversity which Liverpool have faced ever since the arrival of Jürgen Klopp as head coach. While the Merseysiders were able to overturn the three-goal deficit against Barça, overcoming the loss of perhaps a top-five player in the world for almost entire season might prove to be a step too far.
This season will be a true test for Liverpool. That said, this Liverpool team have shown that they can never be counted out. If they can summon the spirit of that one magical April night at Anfield over a whole season, don't be surprised to see them once again exceed all expectations.
No comments:
Post a Comment