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Liverpool news: Jurgen Klopp MOCKED for Virgil van Dijk transfer, he must try this
LIVERPOOL have been mocked for not doing their “homework” on Virgil van Dijk earlier… because he could have been much cheaper had they done so.
Liverpool fans sing BRILLIANT song about Virgil van Dijk
That’s according to Garry Parker, who worked with Van Dijk during his time as a first-team coach at Celtic under Neil Lennon’s stewardship.
Liverpool paid a record £75million to sign Van Dijk from Southampton in January earlier this year.
And the Netherlands international has quickly established himself as one of the best defenders in the world in helping Liverpool to the top of the Premier League.
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However, Parker is surprised it took teams challenging at the top so long to take a serious interest in ex-Hoops star Van Dijk.
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“Liverpool ended up paying £75m for him but if they’d done their homework earlier, like a lot of clubs, they would have got him cheaper,” Parker told the Liverpool Echo.
“I remember Ross Wilson, who works for Southampton (now the club’s director of football operations), phoned me up and asked whether Virgil could play in the Premiership.
“I said, ‘you’re taking the Mick, he’d absolutely walk it’.
“They ended up signing him and doing very well out of it.
“As I say, as soon as he played for us at Celtic we knew he would go on to bigger things. It just depended on what club.
“First it was Southampton, but now he’s at Liverpool, and he’s loving it and he’s thriving.
“They were in the Champions League final last season and now they sit top of the league at Christmas.”
And Parker revealed a secret talent Liverpool fans are yet to see from Van Dijk since his transfer 11 months ago.
“He’s a great free-kick taker,” he said.
“I remember him scoring a great free-kick for us at Hibs.
“Maybe somebody at Liverpool should let him take them and see what he can do!
“As I say, he’s got the lot.”