Virgil van Dijk has said that he is relishing playing against Manchester City striker Erling Haaland on Sunday.
After the duo faced off against each other in the first Premier League meeting between City and Liverpool earlier on in the season, the two sides are set to battle it out once again this weekend.
With the big match around the corner, one Liverpool player has highlighted a member of Pep Guardiola’s squad he can’t wait to come up against.
Van Dijk buzzing for Haaland battle
Speaking to The Athletic ahead of Sunday’s match, Van Dijk had this to say about Haaland.
He said: “It’s always good to come up against one of the best and most in-form strikers in the world.
“He is a natural goalscorer, he has proven it and his numbers are speaking for themselves so it will be a tough afternoon but it’s a battle I am looking forward to.
“I’ve caused him problems, he’s caused me problems – that’s how it works.”
Haaland has played against Van Dijk on six occasions for club and country, but the striker has yet to win a game against the Dutchman, with four defeats and two draws.
However, the Norwegian has scored three goals against the centre-back, which highlights the problems he has caused the Liverpool star, as he mentioned.
With 32 games under his belt this season in all competitions, the 23-year-old has scored 29 goals, which shows how much of a danger he could be for Liverpool’s defence to have to deal with.
Although, the fact that Liverpool’s Dutch defender has made more clearances (110) and interceptions (30) than any other player at the Merseyside club shows how tough it could be for City’s star striker to find the back of the net.
Bearing in mind how the Reds are currently one point ahead of City at the top of the Premier League table, this latest game would be a good time for Haaland to get his first victory against Van Dijk so he can help his team take a step closer to regaining the league title.
