Is a move to Liverpool now inevitable for Southampton’s Virgil Van Dijk?

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The Virgil Van Dijk saga took yet another twist as the Southern Daily Echo claimed that the Dutch international is training alone at Southampton. The local newspaper quoted Saints manager Mauricio Pellegrino as revealing:

“The club was clear. The club told me they will not sell Virgil… Now he is not involved with the team because psychologically he is not 100 per cent. If you are not 100 per cent with the team I need to work with the players who are 1000 per cent to defend Southampton.”

Liverpool were the hot favourites to secure his signature earlier this summer, but after accusations of tapping up the Reds were forced to publicly withdraw their interest in the 26-year-old. That was a huge blow for Jurgen Klopp and co., but it seems that they have not yet moved on to other targets.

Now, the Liverpool Echo believe that the club have continued to monitor the situation and could make a move for the Saints’ captain if he does decide to force a move. They even go so far as to say that a “huge bid” could be possible in order to force the south coast club to consider a sale.

As Pellegrino points out, the St. Mary’s side have shown absolutely no intention of allowing their key man to leave. However, it does mark a significant change from their recent transfer policy of selling key talents and reinvesting the money into the squad. It’s an approach that has already seen the likes of Adam Lallana, Nathaniel Clyne, Dejan Lovren and Sadio Mane move to Liverpool. Now, though, the relationship seems to have been soured by the tapping up allegations.

Despite that, the player clearly has his heart set on a move to the red half of Merseyside. As long as that is the case, it will be difficult for Southampton to keep hold of their man. If he does opt to force a move, they will be left facing the decision whether to accept the inevitable and allow him to leave or whether to keep him marginalised on the fringe of the squad.

Southampton clearly do not want to sell, but it seems that Van Dijk has only one scenario on his mind and Liverpool are keen to make that a reality. It may become a drawn out affair, but it does seem that it’s only a matter of time before he is on his way to Merseyside.