Virgil van Dijk has shared what he said to Anthony Gordon after the England winger’s challenge on the Liverpool captain led to Newcastle being reduced to ten men.
As expected, Monday night’s match at St James’ Park was full of drama.
Ahead of the Premier League showdown, much of the focus was on Alexander Isak, who has been linked with a move to Liverpool. However, the Swedish striker was once again left out of Eddie Howe’s squad in what turned out to be a tightly contested match with both teams giving their all.
Ryan Gravenberch gave Liverpool the lead against the flow of play in the 35th minute, and Newcastle’s challenge grew tougher when Gordon was sent off just before halftime. Gordon had attempted to pressure Van Dijk but mistimed his tackle. Referee Simon Hooper initially showed a yellow card, but after reviewing the incident, he upgraded it to a red—meaning Gordon, formerly of Everton, is now set to serve a three-match suspension.
Just after the break, Hugo Ekitike doubled Liverpool’s lead, seemingly putting the result beyond doubt. However, Bruno Guimaraes pulled one back for Newcastle ten minutes later, and with only a couple of minutes left in regular time, Will Osula equalised for the hosts.
Still, Liverpool had the final say. In stoppage time, 16-year-old Rio Ngumoha, making his Premier League debut, calmly slotted the ball past Nick Pope to secure a second consecutive win for Arne Slot’s side.
Speaking to Sky Sports after the game, Van Dijk commented on both the team’s performance and the red card incident.
“We all know this is a tough place to play,” Van Dijk said. “There was a lot of hype during the week to get Newcastle going, so we expected a fiery match. The frustrating thing for us was conceding from two set pieces – that shouldn’t have happened. But in the end, it’s a great three points, and we move on. They’ve got quality, and you could see the pressure build from free-kicks and corners. Not many of the traditional top-six teams came here and won last season. I enjoy these atmospheres, so I was excited for it, but we could’ve made things easier by avoiding those set-piece goals. That just gave them more belief and energy, especially with the crowd behind them. Still, we got the win and that’s what matters.”
When asked what he told Gordon before he left the field, Van Dijk replied:
“I said to him, ‘If that’s not a red card, then I don’t understand football.’ I found it odd that the referee needed to check the monitor. Whether he meant it or not, it happened. These things are part of football, and now we move on.”
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