Virgil van Dijk has reportedly been ruled out for three months, putting an end to any chances of a potential January transfer.
According to the Sun, scans of the injury the Dutchman picked up against Leicester City over the weekend have revealed the extent of the problem and the news is not good at all for Claude Puel’s side.
Van Dijk will reportedly miss 3 months with the injury which means he will only be available for the final month of the season. The sale of Jose Fonte to West Ham earlier this month only adds to the Saints’ woes with Claude Puel now facing an injury crisis of sorts in defense.
The Sun report that the injury also means that Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester United and Manchester City – all of whom have been heavily linked with moves for the 25-year old – will drop their interest at least until the summer transfer window opens.
Van Dijk has proven himself as one of the best defenders in the league this season after starring for the Saints. The defender was averaging some very impressive statistics in the Premier League until his injury, making 1.9 tackles, 2.6 interceptions and 6.8 clearances per game according to WhoScored.
Manchester City were targeting van Dijk as a replacement for the injury-plagued Vincent Kompany with John Stones struggling to settle into Pep Guardiola’s side. Guardiola denied that he was interested in signing the Southampton defender but that did nothing to dampen the reports that he would make a huge bid for the Dutchman.
Liverpool have also been looking to strengthen their defensive options and van Dijk was singled out by Klopp as the man to partner Joel Matip in defense. Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard even urged the Reds to sign the Dutchman earlier this week.
Chelsea are also looking for another defender who can slot into their central defence for years to come, with John Terry, Branislav Ivanovic and Gary Cahill all ageing options at Conte’s disposal.
Even Manchester United were linked with the Dutchman, with Jose Mourinho looking for a young defender who can form a partnership with summer signing Eric Bailly for a long time.
However, given van Dijk’s quality this is definitely not the end of the story when it comes to a move to one of England’s big boys. Depending on the Dutchman is able to pick himself up after the injury, one or more of the clubs could reignite their interest in the player.
