Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk says pundits have a “duty of responsibility” to a new generation of players when they criticize them.
The defender spoke to one of his pundits, Sky Sports’ Gary Neville, ahead of his side’s game against Manchester City on Super Sunday.
Earlier this season, Van Dijk had an exchange with the media over former Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney’s criticism of the defender. The Reds captain confronted pundits over his comments after Liverpool beat Real Madrid in the Champions League.
Most recently, Nicky Butt and Lisandro Martinez exchanged public messages following the former Manchester United midfielder’s comments.
Van Dijk can withstand criticism, but worries that the rise of social media and popularity among young players could start to have a negative impact.
“Personally, I can deal with it, but I’m a little worried when I think about the next generation,” he told Neville. “I feel that former top players have a responsibility to the new generation.
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In November, Jamie O’Hara spoke out as both a player and a pundit about Wayne Rooney’s criticism of Van Dijk and Van Dijk’s response.
“I think criticism is completely normal and part of the game and should be, but sometimes it becomes clickbait, provocative, or done without considering the mental impact on the players, especially the younger generation who are constantly on social media.
“I can say, ‘Yeah, you shouldn’t be on social media.’ That’s what I’ve said (to them) over and over again.
“When you have a good game, young players check out all the positive praise, but if you have a bad game and you get bullied or bad criticism on social media, it can really affect you. We’ve seen that with certain players in the past and present, because it’s not easy.”
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“It’s going to get worse and worse because these days on platforms, there’s clickbait and headlines and everyone is always paying attention to it.
“I think there’s a responsibility, especially to former pros and top players who have been through everything as well, to protect that aspect a little bit as well. That’s probably something to consider.”
With the Reds struggling to achieve the heights of last season, one member of Liverpool’s set-up that has been in the spotlight is head coach Arne Slott.
Van Dijk added: “The criticism of the season we’re having is natural, because it’s not the standard we set, especially last year, given how we’ve played at times, we’ve lost games on the bounce.”
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“But there’s criticism, there’s contempt. Last week, I was asked if I think that contempt is warranted, but I don’t know because I don’t read it all the time.
“We are in a process and it takes time. As far as I am concerned, Liverpool are not a club that makes hasty decisions and they trust the process.
“But I know how the world works. I know the pressure that managers are under and that they are responsible for the results that we are getting.
“I still feel like this is a process. In my eyes, he deserves respect and he deserves a chance to make sure this process ends on a positive note.”
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