Virgil van Dijk has strongly rejected suggestions that he influenced the Netherlands’ tactical approach during their disappointing World Cup exit, describing claims made about his role as “utter nonsense”.
The Liverpool captain remains a central figure for his country under new Netherlands manager Xavi Hernández and could move closer to his 100th international appearance during the current Nations League window.
However, questions surrounding the World Cup resurfaced during a tense press conference on Wednesday.
Van Dijk rejects claim he influenced tactical switch
The Netherlands progressed from a group containing Japan, Sweden and Tunisia before being eliminated by Morocco on penalties in the last 32.
Van Dijk subsequently faced criticism from De Telegraaf columnist Valentijn Driessen, who argued the defender should step away from international football and heavily criticised his influence on the national team.
Speaking this week, Van Dijk accepted the Netherlands failed at the tournament but rejected suggestions that switching to a back five against Morocco had been his decision.
“One of your colleagues also said that it was my idea to switch to playing with a back five. That is utter nonsense,” Van Dijk said.
“The fact is we simply failed at the World Cup; those are the hard facts.”
Van Dijk stressed that tactical decisions were made by Ronald Koeman and his coaching staff rather than individual players.
“The plan is devised by the staff,” he explained. “Nonsense is being spread so that I look even worse.”
Liverpool captain defends himself against criticism
Van Dijk also rejected the suggestion that criticism from the media generally bothers him, instead taking issue with what he considers inaccurate reporting.
“We didn’t play a good World Cup. It’s not about me. You perform together; you’re a team,” he said.
“Your claim that I destroyed Dutch football after the World Cup – that sort of thing is completely baseless.”
The 35-year-old recently decided to continue his international career following personal talks with Xavi, who has confirmed Van Dijk will remain Netherlands captain.
With 96 appearances already behind him, Van Dijk now has the opportunity to move towards another significant milestone while attempting to help the Netherlands begin a new chapter under their new manager.
Key points
- Virgil van Dijk rejected claims that he influenced the Netherlands’ tactical switch against Morocco.
- The Netherlands were eliminated on penalties in the World Cup last 32.
- Van Dijk accepted the team's World Cup performance was not good enough.
- He described claims that he had “destroyed Dutch football” as “completely baseless”.
- Xavi Hernández has retained Van Dijk as Netherlands captain.
What’s next?
Van Dijk remains on 96 Netherlands appearances heading into the four-match Nations League international window.
Having committed his international future following talks with Xavi, the Liverpool captain can now move closer to 100 caps while helping the new manager establish his own approach with the Oranje.
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