Virgil Van Dijk plays pantomime villain but oozes class on his Southampton return

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It is fair to say that Virgil Van Dijk was certainly not the most popular figure inside St Mary’s last Sunday afternoon.

The Dutch central defender made his first return to Southampton since joining Liverpool for £75 million in early January and he was subjected to a continuous chorus of boos, jeers and mixture of colourful language from the home supporters, who certainly did not hide the ill-feeling that they feel towards their former star.

However, the reaction from the crowd appeared to have little impact on the 26-year-old who, in actual fact, looked to be enjoying his role as the designated pantomime villain for the day.

He spent much of the afternoon with a smile across his face, although admittedly there was plenty to enjoy within the game for anyone connected with Liverpool.

Van Dijk produced his most dominant and imposing performance of the season against Southampton on Sunday and he was the model of composure and control at the heart of a defence that has looked increasingly frail and fragile at times this campaign.

The Dutchman was near faultless and looked every inch the world’s most expensive defender.

That 26-year-old has experiencing something of a topsy-turvy start to his career at Anfield and his return to form on Sunday will have come as a relief for player, manager and club.

The defender scored on his debut in the Merseyside derby but was then part of the team that lost consecutive games against Swansea City and West Bromwich Albion.

He was then the centre of attention last week when he conceded a somewhat controversial last-minute penalty against Tottenham Hotspur.

However, he was in cruise control on Sunday against a Southampton team that struggled to make any clear-cut goal scoring opportunities.

Van Dijk was unaffected by a hostile St Mary’s crowd who certainly showed no signs of forgiving either the Dutchman or Liverpool for the controversy that surrounded his on-off transfer sage for almost half a year.

The ill-feeling stemmed from the summer when Southampton reported Liverpool to the Premier League for making an alleged illegal approach for their star defender.

Liverpool issued a public apology and ‘withdrew’ their interest in the player only for Van Dijk to subsequently hand in a transfer request, which the Saints refused.

The 26-year-old did eventually get his move to Anfield, although he had to wait until January, and the £75 million fee sparked plenty of discussion and debate.

However, now five games into his Liverpool career, Sunday’s performance would suggest that Van Dijk has now settled into life at his new club and it will be intriguing to see what impact he has on the team over the remainder of the season.

Under the management of Jurgen Klopp, Liverpool are undoubtedly entertaining to watch.

The team attack with pace, energy and dynamism and the forward trident of Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah have proven to be devastatingly effective so far this campaign.

However, much of the progress that has been made in recent years has been undermined somewhat by the defensive fragility in the side that always leaves the team likely to concede goals.

Whether the arrival of Van Dijk will correct all of Liverpool’s defensive frailties is yet to be seen. He is, after all, just one new addition to a defensive unit that still has obvious weaknesses.

However, his performance on Sunday is a sign that he will have a positive impact on the team and may be part of a wider solution.

Ironically, the boos, jeers and colourful language that was directed towards Van Dijk by Southampton supporters were being thrown towards a different figure by the end of the contest – that of their beleaguered manager Mauricio Pellegrino.

Van Dijk may have been the pantomime villain on Sunday in the eyes of the home supporters, but for Liverpool supporters he will be the hero if he can help the club to secure silverware by the end of the campaign.