Virgil Van Dijk believes Erling Haaland will make defenders’ lives horrible in England despite rough Community Shield start

The FA Community Shield gave us a glimpse of what it is going to be going forward in the Premier League season. While Liverpool defeated Manchester City 3-1 to lift the Shield, the fans saw how big money signing Erling Haaland missed an absolute sitter from a couple of yards away from goal. The Norwegian had a gaping goal in front of him but he failed to keep it on target.

After the game Liverpool talisman Virgil Van Dijk assured City fans how Haaland will be alright in the coming matches. He also shared how the 22-year-old striker will make defenders’ life miserable in the Premier League once he gets his eye in.

“Focus is always the same for any striker, he has a lot of qualities to make life difficult for defenders. He will make defenders’ lives in England horrible, he’s so direct, he has everything, he can head the ball, he’s quick. Today we kept him at bay, he had one chance, two maybe. Other than that we did well,” shared Van Dijk.

The Dutchman advised how Haaland should only focus on his own game other than listening to others. Although he did not want to give Haaland much advice as they will be clashing swords many times in the upcoming season and will also fight for the league title. “I’m not going to give him too much advice but he will know he has to focus on his own game and not look at what others say. There’s pressure on people who come in for big price tags. What can you do about it?”

It was exceptional for Van Dijk to shut the trolls after a poor performance from Haaland. He made a very logical point when he shared about the pressure that players carry when they come to this league with huge price tags. Players often try to justify their worth and in that they tend to overdo things rather than keeping it simple.

While Haaland struggled it was a great outing for Liverpool’s new signing Darwin Nunez who also faced similar criticism during preseason. But Nunez came up with a statement performance and proved the world that he is a special talent and that is why the Reds went on to break the bank for him. Even Van Dijk was super impressed with the former SL Benfica man and believes that he can do great things going forward.

“He’s a modern-day striker, same with Haaland, similar attributes. It’s difficult to play against. He showed it, it was difficult to play against City, they were fatigued I think. He scored and got involved.”