The Reds have been without one of their most crucial players for some time now, and it could still be a while before they welcome him back.
Jose Mourinho admits it is simply ‘impossible’ for Liverpool to replace Virgil van Dijk in their backline.
Van Dijk suffered a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament after a collision with Jordan Pickford in the Premier League Merseyside derby on October 17 and has since been on the sidelines.
Jurgen Klopp offered a ‘really really promising’ update on the Dutch defender’s recovery last week, though refused to explicitly say if he will return to action again this season.
Liverpool have been hit hard by Van Dijk’s long-term injury. Halfway into the Premier League campaign, the English champions have already lost as many games as they did in their title-winning season and are lagging much behind in the race for the crown.
“They lost a fundamental player, we can say what we want, we can try to hide things, but some players are special and they are impossible to replace so even sometimes the defensive process has a relation with losing an attacking player,” Mourinho told reporters ahead of Tottenham’s clash with Liverpool, via Goal.
“A team very stable defensively is a team with much better conditions to attack and vice versa.
“They lost Van Dijk. It’s very, very important for them.”
Be sure not to miss out on the latest news about Jose Mourinho
Download our brand new App and follow your favorite players, clubs, and much more
