Southampton centre-back Virgil van Dijk made his long-awaited return to action on Monday night – following a nine-month injury lay-off and an eventful summer off the field – when he featured for the Under-23s against Aston Villa at Walsall’s Bescot Stadium.

However, it turned out to be a bad night for both the club and the Dutchman as the south coast outfit were beaten 4-0, with the 26-year-old understandably looking a little rusty.

The Netherlands international has been on the sidelines since January with a foot injury, and he failed to secure the move away from St Mary’s that he wanted during the summer window after handing in a transfer request.

The Saints skipper arguably should have done better for the first, second and fourth Villa goals on Monday, and it remains to be seen whether Mauricio Pellegrino brings him into the fold for the Premier League clash against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Saturday.

Here are three reasons Van Dijk must start against Palace despite the Villa horror show…

Saints are missing a leader right now

Southampton’s 2-0 defeat against Watford at St Mary’s on Saturday was one of their poorest performances in the Premier League for a while, and the team was really lacking leaders on the pitch.

While Van Dijk is a controversial figure among many Saints fans right now because of the way he has acted in recent months, he is the team captain and he was give that role for a reason.

The Dutchman would provide a vocal and aerial presence from the backline if he's named in the starting line-up against Crystal Palace, and it is something that is much needed if the showings of Mauricio Pellegrino's men this term are anything to go by.

He can boost their attacking play

One of Southampton’s big problems right now is their lack of spark in the final third and their shut-out against Watford on Saturday means that they have now failed to find the net in nine of their last 12 Premier League outings.

That is simply not good enough, but the return of Van Dijk to the centre of the defence would certainly boost the team in a number of ways.

With all due respect to Jack Stephens, Maya Yoshida and new boy Wesley Hoedt, the attacking players would certainly feel more comfortable with the Dutchman in the backline, and he has shown on numerous occasions that he can bring the ball out of defence or set his teammates on the attack with his impressive range of passing.

However, the 6'4" Van Dijk also provides a real presence in the opposition penalty area from free-kicks and corners – which could also give more space to someone like Manolo Gabbiadini or Charlie Austin – and he could help his team find the net and bag an important win against and out-of-form Crystal Palace side on Saturday.

The appointment of Roy Hodgson

Mauricio Pellegrino probably would have been quietly confident of taking a result on Saturday against a Crystal Palace side that have lost their opening four Premier League matches of the season without scoring a goal, but the sacking of Frank de Boer and appointment of Roy Hodgson may have changed things.

The Palace players will certainly have an extra spring in their step as they look to impress their new manager, and they could be a completely different team to the one that has often disappointed in the opening month of the new campaign.

Southampton will need to be strong at the back and in the air with the likes of Christian Benteke and Scott Dann likely to feature for the hosts on Saturday, and the presence of Van Dijk in defence would also provide a much-needed boost for the other Saints players on what could be an important early-season fixture for both clubs.

Do you agree, Saints fans? Let us know below.