Liverpool star forced Arne Slot to change his opinion and it should point to contract outcome

Liverpool boss says he in the mold of anymore before he began working with the Dutch captain at Anfield in the summer.

Speaking ahead of facing in the , the head coach outlined how his stance has changed on that role because of how impressive Van Dijk has been. Sent off for his country during the international break, it doesn't take much for those in the Netherlands to criticize Van Dijk — but Slot completely disagrees.

"I understand very well when people describe him as a leader," he told the Dutch outlet (as translated by ). "Because before I worked with Virgil, I always said I no longer believe so much in the concept of a leader. That is something from the past that people always talked about a leader in the team.

"When I played football myself, I always had Alfred Schreuder and Marco de Lofts. And Alfred is more famous than Marco. Who I experienced as leaders who really put us in place [and told us] what we had to do.

"As a coach, I have never experienced someone as a real leader. For the longest time from a coach or something. But Virgil, I think, is someone who constantly makes sure the boys are there and is the leader in coaching.

"He also gives a good example of how to stand on a training field and what you have to do in the gym. And also, for the other players, by constantly standing up for himself."

Liverpool.com says: It was already obvious that the Reds should be tying Van Dijk down to a new contract but Slot's glowing praise only further underlines that point. The Liverpool captain is still among the very best around in terms of his position on the pitch but he is clearly having a massive impact off it too.

Getting an extension sorted out for Van Dijk would allow for the continuation of the process where he can help integrate his successor. The likes of and will only benefit from Van Dijk being around for as long as possible, not least because of his leadership skills.