Van Dijk reveals the toughest striker to play against
Liverpool broke the world record transfer fee for a defender by taking the Dutchman to Anfield in a deal which will be completed when the transfer window reopens on January 1.
The previous record was held by Manchester City who spent £50m for Kyle Walker in the summer.
The 26-year-old has not featured in any of Southampton’s last three games as they slipped to 14th in the Premier League table.
And Neville is not convinced that he is worth the enormous amount of money, especially after failing to impress for the Saints this season.
Sky Sports
Gary Neville has reacted to Liverpool signing Southampton's Virgil van Dijk.
It is a lot of money and I’m not even sure he has been playing that well.
Gary Neville speaking about Virgil van Dijk.
“It’s a lot of money isn’t it,” Neville told Sky Sports.
“It is a lot of money and I’m not even sure he has been playing that well.
“I know Liverpool have wanted him for six months and they do need back up.
“He is a good defender and if they can get him back to his best then they’ll need to for £75m.
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GETTY
Virgil van Dijk had been left out of Southampton's last three matches.
“The market has shifted to an incredible level which has shocked me.
“I was like wow £75m. I was not surprised by the actual transfer but that is an incredible amount of money.
“What can I say is Liverpool need defenders. They have to pay to get him and that’s the way the market is.”
Jordan: Southampton MUST make Liverpool pay for Virgil van Dijk
But according to Neville there is one way the club can justify spending such a huge transfer fee - by winning trophies.
He added: “It sounds like a fantastic deal for Southampton but if Liverpool can stop creaking in big matches, which they do tend to creak when they are put under pressure, then it will be a good deal.
“People will forget about the money that has been spent in a year or twos time if they can win trophies and get that defence right.”