Sports
“Leave our player alone” — Man United fans blast Van Dijk
Liverpool captain, Virgil van Dijk may have bit more than he can chew when he slammed Matthijs de Ligt after his error nearly cost the Netherlands against Germany.
Manchester United fans do not forget their own so easily, and they have come out in full force to defend their player and shift the blame ironically to the Liverpool captain. In a statement akin to saying, ‘it’s your fault our player made the error’, the United fandom have done the 2-2 draw into a Liverpool versus Manchester United argument.
Of course, the Red Devils fanbase are still reeling from the 0-3 loss to Virgil van Dijk and his team, a game Matthijs de Ligt played in.
De Ligt, who joined United from Bayern Munich this summer, endured a tough outing in the Netherlands’ Nations League clash against Germany, but fans believe Van Dijk’s error was just as costly.
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After De Ligt’s mistake led to Germany’s first equalizer, Van Dijk found himself in the spotlight for failing to mark Joshua Kimmich, whose goal put the Germans ahead before half-time. Social media was ablaze with United supporters pointing fingers at Van Dijk, accusing him of poor positioning and escaping criticism due to his reputation.
One fan took to X (formerly Twitter), stating, “Van Dijk has always been bang average at marking and positioning in the penalty box. Overrated. If this were another era, his flaws would be clear.”
Others joined in, suggesting that De Ligt’s club affiliation was the reason for the harsher treatment, with one user adding, “People criticizing Matthijs de Ligt are doing it because of his club, not footballing reasons.”
Despite the defensive debacle, Denzel Dumfries salvaged a point for the Dutch with a second-half equalizer, but the debate over who was really at fault continues to rage. With Ronald Koeman acknowledging De Ligt’s struggles, fans insist Van Dijk should share the blame.
In the eyes of United fans, it seems the Liverpool star’s reputation is shielding him from criticism—raising the question: Is Van Dijk untouchable when it comes to his mistakes?