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Virgil Van Dijk Branded 'Lazy' For Defending Against Chelsea, The Footage Is Damning
Virgil van Dijk's defending for Chelsea's equaliser was questioned by pundits and fans alike.
Virgil van Dijk has been branded "lazy" for the way in which he defended Christian Pulisic's equaliser at Stamford Bridge.
Pulisic latched onto a N'Golo Kante pass just before half-time and finished superbly with his left foot, levelling matters after being 2-0 down at home to Liverpool.
But Van Dijk has come in for criticism from pundits and fans alike for his role in the goal.
The attack wasn't down his side but the Dutch defender appeared to jog back towards his own goal rather than bust a gut to get across to Pulisic.
Former Liverpool captain Graeme Souness was not happy with what he saw from the former Celtic man.
“Why has Van Dijk not come across there?" Souness said on Sky Sports.
“He’s just running in a straight line back to his goal.
“Come over, come over, come over - he’s not even sprinting.”
Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink chimed in, adding: "It’s lazy, isn’t it?”
On co-commentary, Manchester United legend Gary Neville had said Van Dijk had looked "uncomfortable" - while Jamie Carragher lamented the high line Liverpool deployed.
"They never cover each other - there’s an obsession with playing offside," Carragher stated.
“We noticed that right throughout the game, the space between the two centre-backs is too big.
"Initially, his starting position, Van Dijk, because he’s not intense enough to get over, he doesn’t want to cover his other centre-back.
"He stays in the same line, and that’s why he’s too far to get across.”
Having avoided the fastest red card in Premier League history, Sadio Mane put Liverpool ahead early on before Mo Salah scored a lovely solo goal to extend the visitors lead.
Mateo Kovacic scored one of the goals of the season to pull one back and Pulisic capitalised on a poor offside trap to equalise just before half-time.
After today's result, league leaders Manchester City are ten points clear of second-placed Chelsea and 11 ahead of Liverpool.
Featured Image Credit: Image: PATopics: Virgil Van Dijk, Liverpool, Premier League, Chelsea
Josh Lawless