Jaap Stams reveals shock at Virgil van Dijk's meteoric rise

Jaap Stam says Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk hasn’t always been a world-beater and ‘nobody believed in him’ at the start of his career.

The 28-year-old has enjoyed a meteoric rise to the top, initially starting out at Eredivisie side Groningen, and via Celtic and Southampton, has gone on to help restore Liverpool to their former glory.

Since his arrival at Anfield in 2018, Van Dijk has fired the Reds to their sixth European trophy and within just two wins of their first league title in over 30 years.

But while he’s recognised as arguably the world’s best centre-back now, former Manchester United and Netherlands defender Stam says Van Dijk wasn’t always destined to be the greatest.

‘It’s very good to see another Dutch defender going to that height and developing himself a certain way because with Virgil as well in the beginning of his career, even when he played in Holland for Groningen, nobody believed in him or looked at him as a top defender,’ Stam told ESPN FC.

‘The big teams in Holland didn’t want to buy him and then he made the choice to go to Scotland to play for Celtic.

‘His development over there was great playing in a different league, a very tough league, good players, becoming a better player for himself for the team.

‘It also helps as well the players that you’ve got around you, they need to help you out at certain times as well to become a better player so you can learn and you can express yourself a lot more.

‘Then he made the step to the Premier League to Southampton, again, tough league, better league than the Scottish league, better players around him, also against him, and of course is great development and tells you something about him, how he is as a person, as a player.

‘It needs to be in yourself as a player that you want to develop yourself, you need to learn from situations that you’re in, and he’s done that.

‘And now at Liverpool again, big step, big club, a lot of quality players, he’s a big leader in that team but of course, the other players around him help him out as well.

‘It’s a very good combination and its good to see that he’s also performing in the national team as well.’

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