Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk has admitted that former Southampton & Everton manager Ronald Koeman was the reason he decided to join the Saints back in 2015. Van Dijk moved from Celtic to Southampton for £13 million before moving to Liverpool a then world-record fee of £75 million to.
Van Dijk joined the Saints in a £13m switch from Celtic and went on to make 80 appearances in all competitions before heading to Anfield.
Virgil Van Dijk Said “The main reason was Ronald Koeman, I knew players that were there, Dusan Tadic, Jordy Clasie, Graziano Pelle. We had a fantastic team at the time, and I think we had a record-breaking season in my first year there. I envisaged going there with all of these goals to achieve and my first season especially was outstanding. Southampton has been very good for me. When I went to Celtic I didn’t realise how big they were at the time, but I had a feeling before I joined Liverpool how big Liverpool really was. ou see all their games, I’d played there two times before I joined them, and over the course of time before I signed, I met so many people, Liverpool fans, that would say, ‘I hope you sign for us’. It was special, and when things got finalised and you start playing, my debut against Everton was something I will never forget.”
