It has been claimed that no-one wanted to sign Virgil van Dijk from Celtic because of the league he was playing in.
Van Dijk joined Liverpool for £75million from Southampton in January 2018 and has gone on to prove to be one of the best defenders in the world - as well as one of the greatest players in Anfield history.
With the Dutch colossus at the heart of their backline, the Reds lifted the UEFA Champions League in 2019 and the Premier League for the first time 12 months later.
Prior to joining the Saints in 2015, Van Dijk was helping Celtic dominate the Scottish Premiership for two seasons from 2013.
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And now Tim Sherwood has revealed that clubs turned a blind eye to the centre-back due to the level of competition in Scotland.
“We are looking at a guy here in Virgil van Dijk,” ex-Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa boss Sherwood said to HITC (via Premier League Productions ). “He played at Celtic. No-one wanted to take him.
“Everyone was having a look, myself included because he was playing in an environment that was non-competitive. You couldn’t really judge him.
“Then he goes to Southampton. Then you think, ‘oh, we might have missed the boat here. He might be too expensive for us now’. He was proving that he could play in the Premier League.
“And Liverpool have done their homework, spoke to Jurgen Klopp, he said ‘this is the man I want’. And he has come in there with the personality which he has got. That helps. He is very humble. I think he has done absolutely brilliant.”
Van Dijk joined the Reds in the 2018 January transfer window, helping them reach the Champions League final that season before losing to Real Madrid in the final.
Liverpool went one better the following season in Europe and lifted the Premier League trophy in 2020.
This season they have reached the Carabao Cup final where they will play Chelsea on February 27.
