Virgil van Dijk hits back at Wayne Rooney ‘lazy’ jibe

• Wayne Rooney blamed Virgil van Dijk for PSG’s opening goal against Liverpool in midweek
• The Reds were knocked out of the Champions League by the French champions
• Van Dijk explained his thought process in the buildup to the goal

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk defended himself. After former Manchester United forward Wayne Rooney heavily criticised the Dutch skipper for his role in Paris Saint-Germain’s opening goal at Anfield on Tuesday night.

Ousmane Dembele fired PSG in front on the night and level on aggregate in the second leg of the engrossing Champions League last-16 tie. The in-form Frenchman was operating as a roaming false nine in midweek, dropping off the frontline to receive the ball in space before playing it out wide to Bradley Barcola whose low cross eventually fell for Dembele to tap in.

Rooney, in his capacity as a pundit for Amazon Prime, singled out Liverpool’s captain. When analysing the goal. “They are trying to press the ball and Van Dijk gets lazy,” the former England international argued. “If you keep your eye on Van Dijk. He’s walking and leaves a massive gap to Dembele. All he has to do is come across and cover Dembele because there is no other pass for Paris to get out and he doesn’t.”

No more goals were scored, forcing the tie to a penalty shootout which PSG won.

Van Dijk didn’t dwell on this European elimination – instead going to watch his daughter’s school’s production of Fantastic Mr Fox. But the เล่น UFABET ผ่านมือถือ สะดวกทุกที่ ทุกเวลา topic of Rooney’s criticism was raised this week. “Someone told me about this,” Van Dijk admitted. “I think at that particular moment I’m helping [Andrew] Robertson, telling him to clear the outside. I take the inside. I’m even explaining now what I thought at that moment, but if he [Rooney] thought it was lazy then he gave his opinion. That’s it.