On the Premier League homepage, former midfielder Adrian Clarke believes that Virgil van Dijk has regained his peak form and can stop Erling Haaland in the big match between Liverpool and Man City in round 13 today.
"There aren't many centre-backs in world football who have the strength, pace and spirit to confidently take on last season's Premier League top scorer, but Van Dijk is one of them," wrote Clarke - who played for Arsenal from 1991 to 1997.
In fact, Van Dijk has a superior head-to-head record against Haaland, winning four and drawing one of his five matches in all competitions, both at club and international level.
Van Dijk (red) blocks Haaland's shot in the Community Shield earlier this season. Photo: Action Images.
The last time they faced each other was 13 months ago, Liverpool beat Man City 1-0 thanks to Mohamed Salah in round 11 of the Premier League. At Anfield that day, Haaland wanted to exploit the position of Joe Gomez - the center-back who plays alongside Van Dijk - as often as possible. But Van Dijk always stuck close, often winning every time he fought one-on-one with Haaland. The most notable situation was Joao Cancelo's one-touch cross aimed at Haaland in the far corner in front of an empty goal. However, Van Dijk rushed back and headed it over the line, depriving his opponent of a clear scoring opportunity.
In a Man City shirt, the other time Haaland played Van Dijk also had sad memories. In the Community Shield match in July 2022 - the first official match after moving to Man City, the Norwegian striker missed at least three chances, including two in the penalty area. As a result, Man City lost 1-3, missing out on the first title of the season to their rivals.
The confrontations between Van Dijk and Haaland
| Battle | Prize | Result | Haaland scores |
| Liverpool - Man City | Premier League | 1-0 | 0 |
| Liverpool - Man City | Super Cup | 3-1 | 0 |
| Norway - Netherlands | Nations League | 1-1 | 1 |
| Liverpool - Salzburg | Champions League | 4-3 | 1 |
| Salzburg - Liverpool | Champions League | 0-2 | 0 |
Haaland's other two encounters with Van Dijk at club level came while he was playing for RB Salzburg. That was in the 2018-2019 Champions League group stage, when RB Salzburg lost 0-2 at home to Liverpool and 3-4 at Anfield - where Haaland contributed a goal.
At the national team level, Haaland and Norway drew 1-1 with Van Dijk's Netherlands in the UEFA Nations League group stage in September 2021. At that time, Haaland opened the scoring in the 20th minute but Davy Klaassen equalized 1-1 at the end of the first half for the Netherlands.
2022-23 has been a poor campaign by Van Dijk’s high standards, but he has regained his form and confidence since the start of this campaign. The 32-year-old centre-back has become more aggressive in his duels with opposition strikers and has eliminated the silly mistakes that caused him much criticism last season, making virtually no errors in the opening 12 games.
Among defenders who have played more than 800 minutes in the Premier League since the beginning of the season, Van Dijk leads the statistics in the rate of winning one-on-one duels with 80.5%. The Dutch centre-back also has a winning rate in aerial duels of up to 82.3%. These figures for Van Dijk last season were 69.5% and 73.7% respectively. Specifically, Van Dijk has 51 aerial duels won - the second highest figure in the Premier League since the beginning of the season, only behind Brentford centre-back Ethan Pinnock with 59 times.
Van Dijk (right) is regaining his peak form at Liverpool this season. Photo: AFP
Van Dijk had the most successful season in 2018-19 by not allowing a single pass, and he is on track to repeat that incredible feat. Of all the defenders who have played more than 800 minutes in the Premier League since the start of the season, Van Dijk is the only one who has not allowed a pass in 838 minutes on the pitch. Behind Van Dijk are Arsenal's William Saliba and Aston Villa's Ezri Konsa, who have both allowed a pass in 1,080 minutes. West Ham's Kurt Zouma has also allowed a pass in 990 minutes on the pitch.
Last season, Van Dijk was dribbled past 11 times by opposition players. His poor form was partly responsible for Liverpool finishing fifth in the Premier League.
Clarke believes Liverpool and Van Dijk personally could "copy" the style of play that William Saliba and Arsenal used to block Haaland in the 1-0 win over Man City at the Emirates Stadium on October 8. At that time, Saliba - a player with a similar style and physique to Van Dijk - always tried to close in and not give the Norwegian striker much space to handle and accelerate. Collectively, Arsenal kept a suitable distance, did not retreat too deep and did not advance too high. As a result, Haaland only touched the ball four times in the penalty area and could not take any shots.
"Van Dijk cannot single-handedly stop the top scorer, as it is a collective task. But Van Dijk's core strength will ensure Haaland has to work hard to score his 50th Premier League goal," Clarke stressed.
Hong Duy
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