Manchester United were heavily linked with Virgil van Dijk in the summer before he joined Liverpool FC, but few know how close they are to landing the Dutchman.
Virgil van Dijk could easily have pulled on a red shirt for United against Liverpool. Manchester United’s transfer decisions in recent years have been questionable to say the least.
But for all the bad signings they’ve made, the one they missed out on might be the biggest transfer mistake of the bunch. United were looking for defensive reinforcements in the summer of 2017, with Jose Mourinho looking to stabilize his defense to improve on a season in which United finished sixth.
Among the defenders linked was Virgil van Dijk, who has been a standout performer for Southampton over two seasons as they have remained consistently in the top half of the Premier League.
However, nothing like the rumor came to fruition and Mourinho hit home by signing Victor Lindelof from Benfica.Contact with Van Dyke is reported to have been lost.
Charlie Austin, Van Dijk’s teammate at Southampton, has revealed how close a move is.
Austin told talkSPORT in 2021: “I remember the end of his career at Southampton when we were on the bench together at Chelsea. “I sat there and said, ‘Virgil, what’s going on?’ Manchester United must have been after you, right?’ I said, ‘It’s more than a big club in England.
“I knew it happened between Nan Lindelon in the summer and signed a Lindellov,” he said.”I had this:” You have fun! “No one knows it, he said he was on this couch. I couldn’t believe it and was as surprised as you.
Apparently there was talk of him going there in the summer, but they went to Lindelof.Van Dijk was expected to remain a Southampton player in the final days of the summer, but the Dutchman’s consistent performances on the south coast caught Liverpool’s eye and they couldn’t wait any longer.
Jurgen Klopp’s side took £85m in January – a world record for a defender at the time – and haven’t looked back since.
Lindelof has been a fine volunteer for United, making 246 appearances in all competitions over the past eight seasons. But supporters would be forgiven for wondering what happened.
