Virgil van Dijk has dismissed any suggestion he was holding back for Liverpool ahead of the World Cup - as he sounded a gloomy injury note regarding former team-mate Sadio Mane.
Van Dijk flew out with the Holland squad on Tuesday to Qatar, where the centre-back will take part in his first international tournament having been absent from the European Championships last summer as he recovered from the serious knee injury that sidelined him for nine months.
The 31-year-old was one of several Liverpool players to have their form questioned during what the defender admits was a "strange" first part of the season ahead of the World Cup.
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But Van Dijk is adamant he was absolutely committed in helping Jurgen Klopp's side steady the ship after their inconsistent opening few months to the campaign.
"The World Cup is massive but I can also assure that I've been playing all the (club) games, so if I was thinking about the World Cup during the last period I wouldn't play all the games," said the Holland captain. "I wanted to play all the games, because I focus on a game at a time. It is not as if I am holding back or thinking I am going to play 50% today. That was never the case.
“But now it's time. I gave my everything (on Saturday against Southampton), and now the focus is on trying to be successful in the tournament with Holland and I'm really excited about that, really excited about playing against the best players in world football, leading out my country over there, representing my country there in the best way possible. For me, it is a boyhood dream.
"I'm 31 now but it doesn't change the fact that I'm going to enjoy this as much and maybe it is an even better time for me to go there because of everything that I have experienced."
Holland play their opening Group A game against Senegal on Monday where Van Dijk had been expected to come up against ex-Liverpool colleague Sadio Mane, who joined Bayern Munich in the summer after six years at Anfield.
However, a knee injury suffered by Mane last week has cast doubt over his participation, with Van Dijk suggesting the forward is facing the prospect of missing out on the competition completely.
“It’s going to be tough if he plays or not," said Van Dijk. "I don't think he will play, but Senegal have a fantastic team.
"Of course (I have spoken to him). I was feeling sad for him, first and foremost. I’m not happy in this case and I’ve been in that situation where I missed the Euros. We as players work so hard to get to this stage and he has been such an important figure for his country.
“I know for a fact that he will put a brave face on it, but it’s tough and I feel sorry for him. I just want to tell him that whether he plays or not, it’s going to be such a tough game."
The decision to award Qatar the World Cup has long proven controversial due to human rights issues in the country, particularly regards migrant workers who have helped build the stadiums for the tournament.
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp said earlier this month it would be unfair to expect players to engage in political protests during the tournament and implored the attention instead be focused on the governing bodies.
“Obviously it’s a very delicate matter, first and foremost for every team," said Van Dijk. "You’re not happy with that and for me, I’m fully focused on the first game otherwise I can’t focus and get results.
“I think people higher up really should make a difference. Obviously when we’re there, we have eyes as well. We will see things and we will always as a group if we feel we can make a change, we will be open to that, but we shouldn’t be forced to do certain things which maybe we're not comfortable with.
“It’s a delicate matter. We have to see it for ourselves first of all. We can always try and make an impact on everything that’s happening. But I’m a football player. I wanted to play World Cups when I was younger, that’s the feeling I’ve got right now that I’m going to play my first World Cup with Holland and hopefully win many games.”
Asked if he was confident in speaking out, Van Dijk added: "I’m a human being and you guys know that I’m not shy about saying exactly what I think, that’s definitely the case. But I think the most important message is that you shouldn’t be forced to do things you’re not comfortable with, you have to be fully behind them.
“We’ll see what happens, but the first thing is football. I’m not a politician. FIFA is definitely one of the responsible ones it starts with.”
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