Just when you thought Virgil Van Dijk’s next destination was becoming clearer, another spanner has been thrown into the works.
There was good news yesterday when Micky Quinn – a former Newcastle player and ‘Liverpool insider’ as per the Express – voiced his belief that the Reds were “very close” to getting a deal for Southampton centre-back Virgil Van Dijk over the line.
The Reds are going to have to absolutely smash their transfer record – Southampton were reported today to be willing to turn down any and every offer below a ridiculous £70m – to secure the defender’s signature but Quinn believes the Dutchman is more than “worth it.”
However, Chris Williams of This Is Anfield reports that this “very close” deal could be in danger of falling through entirely. Why? Wages.
Williams relays that the Reds initially offered the Dutchman a straight £180,000 per week, the same amount as Manchester City but a late change to the wage package has “angered Van Dijk’s representatives.“ The Reds late attempt to change the wage package to a straight £130k a week, rising to £180k in bonuses did not go down well with the player’s agency.
Despite Liverpool apparently remaining Van Dijk’s preferred destination, these actions could see the Reds pushed back down the pecking order and threaten to scupper their chances of beating Man City and Chelsea to the player.
What do you guys think of the situation? Should Liverpool be looking to simply fork out whatever it is Van Dijk wants or are they right to not offer him the same level of cash that Manchester City are capable of?