Liverpool have been handed a huge setback ahead of their clash with Chelsea. The Blues will welcome Jurgen Klopp's side to Stamford Bridge on Tuesday evening as either club looks to ignite a late – and ambitious – push for top-four.
It has been revealed that Virgil van Dijk was omitted from the Reds' squad to face the west London outfit due to illness. According to The Athletic, the 31-year-old defender missed training in the build-up to the fixture, ruling him out of contention.
Despite having returned from an ACL injury last season, he's been a constant fixture in the Liverpool side. Van Dijk played every Premier League and Champions League game this season ahead of the World Cup before going on to lead his country to the quarter-finals in Qatar.
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There was very little recovery time after that too, playing three times in eight days upon his return in the New Year. Van Dijk later suffered a hamstring injury which put him out of action for six weeks.
The Dutchman has been subject to plenty of criticism recently having failed to display the lofty standards he once set himself a few years ago. However, in an interview quoted by the Daily Star, Van Dijk revealed how the sudden number of games upon his return from injury affected him.
"But coming back from the knee injury, I played all the Premier League games, I think, because everybody wants to be out there, I want to be out there," he said. "That's what I'm working hard for. What caught up is that I played too many games at a time.
"When it's game day I want to play, I'll do everything possible to play, but I could have also thought before the World Cup, 'Let's rest a little bit in order to be ready'. But I didn't because I want to play and I want to be influential for this football club because I love this club and I work each and every day to be successful for this club.
"But it caught up with me unfortunately, my body, I'm not a robot, and I think going into the World Cup, having the World Cup, and then doing nothing for a week and coming back it was maybe not the right decision.
"But at the end of the day these things happen, they could have not been happening and I would still be playing. I would say that everything that happened, happened for a reason, and this six weeks was a good chance for me to reflect, but also let my knee settle a little bit and get ready for the rest of the season.
"It was a tough six weeks to watch because you want to help the team and especially with a hamstring injury you have to be very patient. Patience is not in my vocabulary, it's not in my system, but I had to."
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