Virgil van Dijk believes that criticism of football players is getting out of hand and warns young talents. According to the Liverpool and Dutch captain, former top players in particular have the responsibility to pay attention to their words.
Van Dijk sees that the performances of football players are analyzed mercilessly. “I won’t say it is easy, because there is just so much noise. For the next generation it will be very difficult. It is sometimes really ridiculous. There are more and more platforms and Mo Salah and I always say to younger players: stay away from social media,” the 34-year-old defender said. The Times.
“You often hear: You just have to learn to live with it. No, it doesn’t work that way, because you don’t have to be able to deal with all that information all the time. Let’s just play football. They did that ten, twenty years ago too, and everyone achieved legendary status,” Van Dijk continues. “On those platforms, everything revolves around clicksand who wants to be first. For the next generation — Rio Ngumoha and young boys like him: okay, brace yourself!“
Van Dijk spoke with Amara Nallo after his red card against Crystal Palace. “I said: don’t go on social media, stay with your family. I also spoke to him when he got a red card against PSV in January. If he went on social media, you never know what could happen. It is a very dangerous place.”
The veteran of Liverpool and the Dutch national team also points to former players, who now give their unvarnished opinions as analysts. “I think, especially with former top players who appear on TV, that they have a responsibility not to cross the line.”
According to Van Dijk, this does not mean that no criticism should be expressed. “I understand that criticism is part of football. Criticism of our performances on the pitch, if justified, is absolutely fair and as professional footballers we have to accept that. I’m not saying you should never criticize, but let’s be mindful of how we treat the next generation of players. These days, anything said, no matter how small, can become huge, especially when a legend of the sport says something. Then people jump on it and make a huge drama out of it.”
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