Virgil van Dijk Raises Eyebrows With Post-Match Excuse After Liverpool’s 3-2 Loss to Bournemouth

Liverpool’s dramatic 3-2 defeat to Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium brought their 13-game unbeaten Premier League run to a crashing halt — and the post-match fallout has only intensified the frustration among supporters. Much of the anger has been directed at captain Virgil van Dijk, whose explanation for Bournemouth’s opening goal has been labelled by fans as an attempt to dodge responsibility.

It was a bruising afternoon for Arne Slot’s side. Bournemouth struck first when Evanilson capitalised on Van Dijk’s failure to deal with a bouncing delivery, before Alex Jimenez doubled the hosts’ advantage just seven minutes later. Liverpool responded through Van Dijk himself, nodding home just before the break, and later found an equaliser via Dominik Szoboszlai’s clever free-kick in the 80th minute. But the Cherries had the final say, as Amine Adli sealed the win in a pulsating five-goal contest — a moment that reignited scrutiny on Liverpool’s defensive leader.
Despite a few bright sparks — with Florian Wirtz offering flashes of creativity and substitutes Hugo Ekitike and Rio Ngumoha injecting energy — Liverpool were defensively fragile throughout.

That weakness was brutally exposed for the opener. A well-judged ball from Marco Senesi dropped awkwardly between Van Dijk and Alex Scott, with the Dutch defender misjudging the bounce, allowing the Bournemouth midfielder to square for Evanilson to tap in.
Speaking to Sky Sports after the match, Van Dijk was asked to explain the decisive spell in which Bournemouth scored twice. Rather than holding his hands up, he pointed to the conditions:

“For the first goal, it was a very difficult ball to judge. The wind was tricky all game — you could see it, especially with the long balls. Conceding wasn’t the issue, because I thought we controlled the game well before that.”
He also addressed Liverpool’s decision not to put the ball out of play during the buildup to another goal:

“We had 10 men at that moment. You can say we should kick it out, but it’s a split-second decision. We kept possession and unfortunately conceded. Losing never feels good, especially as a Liverpool player.”
Van Dijk went on to suggest he was fouled in the buildup to Bournemouth’s winner, claiming he had been blocked:

“I felt I was clearly blocked. The referee and VAR didn’t see it that way, so we have to accept it.”

However, Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp disagreed, arguing that Van Dijk was actually impeded by his own teammate:
“He was blocked — but by Curtis Jones. Virgil goes to attack the ball, Jones trips into him, and then it all falls to Adli, who’s the only one switched on.”
Liverpool fans were far less forgiving.

With the looming threat of Manchester United overtaking them in the table, supporters took to social media to criticise their captain’s comments.

“Virgil, I love you, but this is an embarrassing take,” one fan wrote. Another added: “Blaming the wind? That’s shameless. His defending for the first goal was lazy — no excuses.”

Van Dijk remains a central figure in Liverpool’s modern success, but this episode has sparked an uncomfortable debate among supporters: whether the once-dominant defender is beginning to struggle in a league that thrives on speed, intensity, and physicality — areas where cracks are starting to show.