'Perfect match for me' says Virgil van Dijk about his new club Liverpool
Liverpool paid £75m to Southampton in order to bring Van Dijk to Anfield.
Virgil van Dijk has expressed his delight after completing a switch to Liverpool by saying that the Reds are a "perfect match" for him and his family.
The Merseyside club agreed to a £75m ($101.6m) deal with Southampton for the 26-year-old in December. He completed his move to Anfield on 1 January and has already joined his new teammates for the training session.
Prior to his move to Liverpool, Van Dijk was attracting interest from other top clubs from England and across Europe. According to the Spanish publication Sport, Barcelona were interested in signing the former Celtic star, while Pep Guardiola's Manchester City were looking at the option of landing him.
Liverpool and City have been tracking the Dutch international even before the start of the season. Van Dijk snubbed advances from the Premier League and the La Liga leaders and opted to join Jurgen Klopp's side.
"I am happy to be here and I can't wait to get started. I think the most important thing is the size of the club, the culture of the club, the players, the manager and obviously the fans, who make the club this special," Van Dijk told Liverpool's official website.
"With the history at the club and everything around it – even the training ground and stuff – it is just a perfect, perfect match for me, and a perfect match for my family as well."
Van Dijk could have ended up earning more, had he swapped Southampton for the Etihad. His decision to join Liverpool, despite having offers and opportunities to play for Guardiola's City and Barcelona will come as a welcome boost for Liverpool and their fans.
Though Liverpool and other top clubs are nowhere close to challenging City in the title race season, Van Dijk believes Liverpool are "very close" to winning silverware.
"I hope to win trophies. Every player wants to win trophies and with this squad we have and the progress the club is making, I think we are very close to it. Obviously, we still need to do it and we will see what the future brings," Liverpool's new addition explained.
