Watch: Ex-England defender says Virgil van Dijk is ‘not really reacting’ in defensive situations and ‘looks quite poor’ at the moment

Virgil van Dijk is finding himself in quite a unique position, on the end of some criticism following some of his recent performances for Liverpool.

He’s certainly not the only one, considering our winless start to the campaign, and his performance against Manchester United has been analysed by a former England defender.

Speaking on Sky Sports News, Matthew Upson said: “Well I think you’re talking about a very accomplished centre back, who’s got an amazing reputation, ticks a lot of boxes, but he is a big guy.

“Liverpool aren’t quite firing on all cylinders at the moment and it’s going to leave you a little bit more exposed than what you would usually expect. You’re seeing that in certain moments that he’s finding himself in at the moment.

“When that space is around you, it’s about getting out to the ball quickly – getting yourself set. He is a master at assessing 1v1 situations, guiding players into avenues he wants them to go so he can stay on his feet and just shepherd in things where he needs to be.

“You don’t necessarily see him too many times throw himself in the way of balls, go to ground, make last ditch tackles, he’s not that type of defender. But he’s finding himself in situations at the moment where that’s actually now required.

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“Liverpool aren’t in control of games as much as they like so those situations where he’s got to go out and affect the ball, he’s not really reacting in that way and looks quite poor at times.”

The Dutch captain has been so consistent over the past few years that any performances below perfect often attract this level of attention.

There should be no doubt that the 31-year-old will be able to bounce back from this and be back to his normal impervious self, very soon.

You can watch Upson’s thoughts on van Dijk via @SkySportsPL on Twitter: