Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk is "overrated" and doesn't even lace John Terry or Rio Ferdinand's boots.
That's an opinion held by ex-Chelsea defender Jason Cundy, who blasted the Netherlands international in a scathing assessment following the Reds' 1-0 defeat at Bournemouth. Philip Billing's first-half strike separated the two sides as Liverpool suffered a blow in their pursuit of a Champions League place.
Van Dijk didn't cover himself in glory for Billing's goal, as he casually allowed Dango Outtara to breeze past him on the right-hand side before crossing into the box. It was lacklustre defending from the Dutchman as Billing was free in acres of space to slot home.
After the game, Cundy told talkSPORT: "I think he is overrated, personally. I think there is a lot of media love-in with what Van Dijk has done. I have no doubt that Van Dijk is a brilliant centre-half, but he makes too many mistakes that go unnoticed.
"There was a goal they conceded during Covid when they went out of the Champions League. Again, he has this languished style of run, he seems to try and bide time but doesn't react. I think he has had a good 18 months, and I know the injury has had an impact on that, but that goal [vs Bournemouth] was not down to the injury.
"I can't quite put my finger on it but once he gets away from him on the right-hand side, he seems to stop and misjudge the situation. People compare him to John Terry and Rio Ferdinand but he cannot lace their boots."
Joe Cole also slammed Van Dijk after Liverpool's defeat on the south coast and admitted that his reaction to switching off for the goal is something you shouldn't see from a captain.
Cole told BT Sport: "It’s a simple pass over top. Now he gets back in, now he needs to switch on, he should be in business. When have we ever seen Van Dijk just let someone stroll past him in that situation. [He] switches off. Look at the reaction. You don’t want that for your captain."
Meanwhile, Jurgen Klopp said that the goal was an avoidable one and an incident that Liverpool should have dealt with in a more appropriate way. "We cannot go through it completely, pass the ball, don’t cover the space," Klopp said.
"I don’t know 100% anymore how the positioning was, I need to watch it back. In the end, a ball comes from the outside into the inside and probably it should be defendable as well but I have to watch it back."
Liverpool are next in action when they travel to Real Madrid on Wednesday in the Champions League last-16 second-leg as they look to avenge a 5-2 first-leg defeat.
