Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk is on the verge of signing a bumper new deal to commit the best years of his career to Merseyside.
The Ballon d’Or nominee and Uefa Player of the Year winner is set to be rewarded for his Liverpool performances which have catapulted the Reds into both European and Premier League contenders.
Van Dijk will receive a huge pay rise to the north of £200,000 per week, vastly exceeding his basic £125,000-a-week plus bonuses deal, as report the Mirror.
The Dutchman still has four years to run on his current deal, though the recent world record acquisition of Harry Maguire by Manchester United has reportedly seen Liverpool thrash out a new deal to reflect Van Dijk’s status.
After arriving only a mere 20 months ago in January 2018, Van Dijk has already played in two Champions League finals with the Reds, and lifted the famous trophy in Madrid after victory over Tottenham. He also played a role as Jurgen Klopp’s side defeated Chelsea last month in Istanbul to win the Uefa Super Cup.
Liverpool paid £75million to get their man, after seeing efforts fail during the summer prior when the club had to issue an apology to Van Dijk’s former employers Southampton for their conduct.
The fee made Van Dijk the world’s most expensive defender at the time, eclipsing the then record £45m purchase of Kyle Walker by Manchester City. His time on Merseyside has already seen Van Dijk crowned PFA Player of the Year, while he is also tipped to edge living legends Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to be crowned 2019 Ballon d’Or winner later in the year.
