Virgil van Dijk showers praise on Liverpool teammate Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain

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Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk has hailed Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain after the Englishman hit a brilliant brace against Genk in the Champions League.

The former Arsenal man was handed his fourth start of the season by Jurgen Klopp, and set about repaying his manager’s faith inside two minutes with his first goal of the evening.

His second was a moment of real quality, guiding a first-time deft shot from the edge of the box in off the crossbar.

It was a great night for £35 million signing Oxlade-Chamberlain (BBC Sport), who of course sustained his awful knee injury in this competition in 2018 against AS Roma.

Fans were elated for the 26-year-old, as was van Dijk who believes he ‘deserved’ such a night.

The Dutchman said (Daily Mail): “He’s worked so hard to get back to this point and he deserves a night like that.

“He’s such a great guy, such an important guy for the group. He’s a quality player and he showed it, not only with his goals, but also with his all-round game.

“During a difficult period, he always managed to stay positive. We were all there for him. Pre-season was tough for him but he’s showing a lot of great things right now. He’s so sharp. His goals made the difference.”

TBR’s view – Headache for Klopp?

Oxlade-Chamberlain’s brilliant performance may well have given Klopp a dilemma going forwards.

Although Genk are not the toughest of oppponents, he really did shine bright and offered different qualities in the middle of midfield to Jordan Henderson.

He was playing superbly before he sustained his knee injury and his drive and creativity could take the Reds to the next level this season.