Virgil van Dijk was a key figure in Liverpool’s dominant 4-0 win over Tottenham in the League Cup semi-final second leg on Thursday.
The Dutch defender, who scored the Reds’ final goal, completely shut down Richarlison throughout the match. The tension between the two escalated when Van Dijk pretended to help the Brazilian up after a foul, only to withdraw his hand and walk away, leaving Richarlison on the ground.
Another controversial moment occurred in the 3rd minute when Van Dijk wrapped his arms around Richarlison before delivering an elbow to his face—an incident that went unpunished by the referee and was not reviewed by VAR.
As for his future, Van Dijk remains non-committal despite being six months away from the end of his contract: “I feel good, I have no idea what the future holds,” he told Sky Sports. However, several reports suggest that both he and Mohamed Salah are set to extend their stay at Anfield.
