Jamie Redknapp shows no sympathy for Virgil van Dijk following the Liverpool captain’s post-match complaint.

Jamie Redknapp showed little sympathy for Virgil van Dijk after the Liverpool skipper suggested he was fouled in the build-up to Bournemouth’s dramatic stoppage-time winner on Saturday night.

Liverpool had clawed their way back from two goals down to make it 2-2 late on, and that scoreline held deep into added time when Bournemouth earned a throw-in just outside the Reds’ box. What followed was chaotic defending, with Amine Adli taking full advantage to stab home the winner, sparking wild celebrations at the Vitality Stadium and leaving a furious Arne Slot charging towards the officials at full-time.

Redknapp dismisses Van Dijk’s complaint

After the match, Van Dijk told Sky Sports he believed he had been illegally blocked moments before the decisive goal, saying the referee and VAR had missed a clear foul. While he accepted the decision, the Liverpool captain maintained that the goal should not have stood.

Redknapp, however, was having none of it. Breaking down the incident on Sky Sports, he argued that Bournemouth were blameless, pointing out that Van Dijk was actually impeded by a teammate. According to Redknapp, Curtis Jones accidentally caught Van Dijk as he tried to jump, preventing him from getting a clean header rather than any foul from a Bournemouth player.

Replays tell a different story

Although Van Dijk’s frustration was understandable in the heat of the moment, the replays showed his anger was misplaced. The contact came from Jones, not an opponent, and even after that mix-up, Liverpool still had a chance to clear the danger. Instead, they failed to do so, allowing Adli to capitalise.

Despite getting on the scoresheet himself, it was a disappointing evening overall for the captain. He was also at fault earlier in the game, failing to deal with a long ball that led to Evanilson’s opener.

When Liverpool review the match, the conclusion will be hard to escape: the blame lies with their own defending, not the officials. The scrappy nature of Adli’s winner will linger on the long trip back to Merseyside, with the Reds now hoping results elsewhere go their way to avoid slipping out of the top four.