It would make perfect sense for Real Madrid to sign Virgil van Dijk as well as Trent Alexander-Arnold from Liverpool when their contracts expire this summer.
Real need a high-class centre back and Van Dijk is one of the top five in the world. Carlo Ancelotti likes to work with experienced players and at 33, Van Dijk can play at the highest level for maybe another four years. In recent times, Real’s transfer policy has shifted to successfully target free agents, including Antonio Rüdiger, David Alaba and Kylian Mbappé. It seems like a no-brainer.
I went to watch Van Dijk against Brentford on Saturday and caught up after the match with Natalie Sawyer, my co-presenter on talkSPORT’s Weekend Sports Breakfast. Before I had even said anything, she said “jammy”, referring to Liverpool, who I support, scoring both their goals in stoppage time.
Natalie is a Brentford supporter and she likes to tell me about the celebrities who watch their home matches. Noel Gallagher and Claudia Schiffer turned up to watch the 2-2 draw with Manchester City last week. Jonathan Ross was there on Saturday. You can imagine I wondered which famous person I would bump into when I turned up at the stadium on Saturday. I walked in and there was Nigel Spackman, the former midfielder.
I reminded Nigel that he set up my equaliser for Celtic in a 1-1 draw in the Old Firm match in 1991. Unfortunately for him, he was playing for Rangers and his back-pass ran short. The funny thing, I told him, was that I could not remember him releasing me in the same way when we both then joined Chelsea in 1992. I had not seen him since I left there two years later.
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Nigel also played for Liverpool and often attends their matches. We began chatting about Van Dijk and Nigel agreed that he has been one of Liverpool’s best two players this season. The centre back had a fairly comfortable time against Brentford. As Liverpool’s head coach Arne Slot said, Brentford had their threatening moments when the match was goalless but their attackers were pushed wide or away from goal by Van Dijk and Ibrahima Konaté.
Liverpool were not seriously troubled. Van Dijk got back when Bryan Mbeumo got past him early on and he was generally in the right place to clear crosses and balls into the area. Slot was continually gesturing to Van Dijk about the position of the back line and using him to pass instructions. He clearly sees him as his leader on the pitch and seems to have adapted Van Dijk’s game, asking him to push into midfield at times.
It is highly unusual for a big club such as Liverpool to have three stars all out of contract in the same summer and it might smack of carelessness to let it happen. While Mohamed Salah, 32, continues to publicly cast doubt on staying and Alexander-Arnold, 26, seems destined for Real, there have hardly been any noises around Van Dijk. He spoke about his “love” for the club around Christmas while being careful not to commit either way.
Perhaps people assume that it is only a question of Van Dijk being offered the right financial deal in contrast to more obvious reasons why Salah and Alexander-Arnold might leave Anfield. Salah would be a coup for the Saudi Pro League, while Alexander-Arnold has not reached his prime and Real Madrid is not an opportunity to pass up, if he wants a different challenge and lifestyle. Alexander-Arnold is young enough to be able to return to the Premier League.
I have watched Real a number of times this season and it is clear they need a top centre back alongside Rüdiger. They have sometimes used Éder Militão, Aurélien Tchouaméni, a midfielder, and a youngster Raúl Asencio.
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Real started work on signing Rüdiger long before he joined them. He was advised by them not to renew a deal with Chelsea in 2022. Why wouldn’t they be whispering compliments in Van Dijk’s ear now, telling him that he could be the lynchpin of their defence? They could match the wages offered by Liverpool and offer him a new challenge at the greatest club in the world. Their history is second to none. They have lifted the Champions League in five of the past nine seasons — including twice beating Van Dijk’s Liverpool in the final.
Ancelotti likes experienced players and interesting deals. When he managed Everton he signed James Rodríguez on a free transfer in 2020 and the attacker was involved in 15 goals across competitions in his first campaign at the club. Ancelotti’s AC Milan sides which lifted the Champions League in 2003 and 2007 included Clarence Seedorf, Alessandro Nesta, and Andrea Pirlo among other seasoned professionals.
In my view Liverpool were the team to beat in 2020-21, but they lost Van Dijk to knee surgery after a tackle by Jordan Pickford, the Everton goalkeeper, in October that season. It changed the course of the campaign. They beat Crystal Palace 7-0 at Selhurst Park to move five points clear at the top before Christmas and then things fell apart. They lost six straight home matches in the league, finishing 17 points behind Manchester City in third place. Van Dijk did not return until the start of the following season.
He has been as vital this time helping Liverpool top the Premier League as well as Champions League group, winning all six matches in Europe so far. Competing for trophies is the best reason to persuade any player to re-sign a contract. If Van Dijk believes that Liverpool are about to dominate in the next few seasons, it is a strong reason to want to stay.
Liverpool’s academy has helped to produce some excellent prospects. Conor Bradley, 21, has a lot of potential and might replace Alexander-Arnold if he leaves. Jarell Quansah, also 21, has impressed this season but it would be a big ask for him to fill the boots of Van Dijk. Teams wanting to challenge for trophies need experience, which is why Van Dijk would be an attractive option for Real.
