Why it was ‘always Liverpool’ for Virgil van Dijk – and a no-brainer to keep him

The way Virgil van Dijk put it on Sunday, a saga had the feel of a formality. “Everything that embodies Liverpool that is just part of me,” he said. A man with a claim to be Liverpool’s finest ever centre-back, who is set to join their band of title-winning captains has become part of the fabric of the club to the extent that it has seemed surreal that, until a new contract was belatedly signed, they risked losing a £75m signing on a free transfer.In theory, Van Dijk&rsqu