Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk has made a strong transfer demand following his team’s Community Shield loss to Crystal Palace on Sunday.
The Reds suffered their second straight Wembley defeat to Palace, who triumphed 3-2 on penalties after a 2-2 draw in regulation time. Liverpool started well, with new signing Hugo Ekitike scoring within four minutes.
Palace equalized when Jean-Philippe Mateta converted a penalty in the 17th minute, awarded after Van Dijk fouled Ismaila Sarr. Just four minutes later, Arne Slot’s side took the lead again thanks to a fortunate goal by Jeremie Frimpong. Sarr then leveled the score in the 77th minute, sending the match to penalties.
In the shootout, Mohamed Salah, Harvey Elliott, and Alexis Mac Allister missed their attempts, while Justin Devenny scored the winning penalty for Palace, delighting their fans.
Following the match, some Liverpool supporters voiced concerns about the lack of attacking depth on the bench after the departures of Darwin Nunez and Luis Diaz.
Van Dijk spoke to talkSPORT’s Alex Crook after the defeat, saying, “I hate losing… and my last two games at Wembley haven’t gone well. With Darwin and Lucho gone, we definitely need a new striker this summer.”
Liverpool’s primary target appears to be Newcastle forward Alexander Isak, 25, who has attracted interest throughout the transfer window. The Reds had a bid of over £110 million plus add-ons rejected by Newcastle last week.
Despite Liverpool’s pursuit, Isak returned to Newcastle’s training on Monday but was told to stay away from first-team sessions by head coach Eddie Howe. After Newcastle’s 2-0 friendly loss to Atletico Madrid, Howe commented on the situation, saying, “Everything is in play. He’s contracted to us and the club will decide his future. I have a preferred outcome—I want the strongest squad with players who truly want to play here.”
Newcastle have consistently maintained that Isak is not for sale this summer.
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