Not Quansah: Liverpool may have had the perfect Virgil Van Dijk successor in £25m ace Arne Slot sold - opinion

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Liverpool have been struggling defensively this season. Arne Slot’s men still have a lot of adjusting to do due to the number of players that have been welcomed through the Anfield doors during the summer transfer window.

Photo by Crystal Pix/MB Media/Getty ImagesDespite the Reds being interested in the Englishman, there may have actually already been a player among their ranks who could be of use to Slot at the moment, who the former Feyenoord boss sold.Sepp van den Berg could have been Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk replacement With Virgil van Dijk only being contracted to Liverpool until the summer of 2027, it’s clear that another new player or two will need to be brought in, unless his stay is extended, of course.However, with the bad run of luck that Liverpool have had with defenders this season, such as Giovanni Leoni, it would’ve been nice for them to already have a backup option among their ranks if needed. The Dutchman was brought in from PEC Zwolle for a small fee of £4.4million, and although he only played four times for Liverpool during his stint, now that he’s playing for Brentford, it’s clear that he was ready to take the step up.

Erling Haaland has praised Sepp van den Berg for his performance against himNot only is Van den Berg Dutch, but he’s also 6ft 3in and can play as the left or right-sided centre-back. And, even though they may have been beaten 1-0 by Manchester City on 5 October, that didn’t stop the goalscorer, Erling Haaland, from singing Van den Berg’s praises after the game.