Liverpool defender, Virgil Van Dijk, has gave his opinion on Liverpool’s new tactical approach following the Reds’ 3-2 victory over Nottingham Forest at Anfield on Saturday.
The Reds have won back-to-back games against Leeds and Nottingham Forest since switching their approach, scoring nine goals across the two fixtures.
According to the Athletic, the Dutchman revealed:Â “It’s a work in progress, but we all like it. Forest did quite well in my opinion, they made it hard to find players without pressure.”
The statistics from Saturday’s game back up Van Dijk’s comments, especially if compared to the stats from Liverpool’s victory against Leeds United at Elland Road last Monday.
Despite being at home on Saturday, Liverpool only managed to complete 650 passes against Forest which is 219 less than the total against Leeds United (869).
However, it is also important to note that Liverpool’s pressing was once again back to its best.
This led to the Reds’ having 81% possession in the game and limiting Nottingham Forest to just 78 passes in the entire game, the second-fewest by a team in a Premier League game since 2004.
Ironically, Virgil Van Dijk himself completed more passes than the whole Nottingham Forest team with 90 accurate passes, leaving him with a stunning 97% pass completion rate throughout the game.
Jurgen Klopp will be hoping for an away performance like last week, as Liverpool travel to London to face West Ham United in a must-win game on Wednesday.
