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The form of Liverpool and their players has been brought into question many times over the course of the campaign.

At points in the season it has felt as if the club are that formidable that it would be impossible for them to lose.

However, as the Reds ventured into the tail end of the season, it feels as if the players have let themselves and the fans down.

Prior to the most recent international break, it felt as if Liverpool were out for blood and looking to claim every trophy possible.

Not only was this due to Jurgen Klopp’s announcement that he would be leaving the club at the end of the season, but, because they owed it to the fans after their abysmal showing in the 2022/23 season.

The club had even been touted to win all four of the trophies available to them this season.

This evidently wasn’t meant to be and it looks likely that the club will end the season with just the Carabao Cup to their name.

Although this is largely due to the players’ form, there has been the odd occasion here and there where the squad have played particularly well.

In fact, there are a select few players who have been consistently outstanding for the club and played to the best of their abilities across the entirety of the campaign.

One of those is captain, Virgil van Dijk.

Despite only returning from a serious injury last season, the Dutch defender has once again been top notch.

This thought process is shared by former Manchester City man Micah Richards who believes the defender has been “outstanding” despite the season being “difficult.”

“I think Van Dijk has been outstanding this season, but he has constantly had to chop and change centre-half partners whether that’s Konate or Quansah,” he said on The Rest is Football podcast.

“It has been difficult?

He has had to be flawless for big parts of the season.”

As Richards outlined, Van Dijk has had to be near flawless all season due to the mass amount of defensive injuries Liverpool sustained this season.

Although there have been strings of games where the centre-back pairing has been the same, there hasn’t been a specific pairing this season which we’ve seen more than another.

This not only causes unrest amongst the club due to now knowing who will be played but also adds extra pressure onto the Dutch international.

Of each Liverpool player that has been used this season, the 32-year-old has been the one certain in almost every line-up.

Without the defender holding the back-line together, the Reds would’ve likely been in a much more disadvantageous situation than what they currently find themselves in.

With a new manager coming in for next season, this could be the ideal time to find a long-term partner for Van Dijk in order to create some added sustainability in the defence.

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