Virgil van Dijk delivers clear verdict on Gabriel Martinelli shove after Arsenal point

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk spoke following the Reds' goalless draw with Arsenal in the Premier League, where he was proud of the performance but worried about Conor Bradley

LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 08: Virgil van Dijk of Liverpool during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Liverpool at Emirates Stadium on January 08, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

Virgil van Dijk was "proud" of the performance that he and his Liverpool teammates put in against Arsenal on Thursday, though the Reds now face an anxious wait to discover the extent of the injury that Conor Bradley sustained in stoppage time.

Arsenal forward Gabriel Martinelli pushed Bradley while he was down and in pain, with Arne Slot playing down the situation in his post-match press conference. The Brazilian has since apologized, and Van Dijk's main concern is the well-being of the Northern Irishman, who will have a scan to determine how bad the problem is.

"Our thoughts are with Conor, first and foremost," Van Dijk told reporters at the Emirates Stadium. "Hopefully it is not the worst, but it doesn’t look great. Other than that, our game plan was outstanding in my opinion.

"It is pretty obvious for you guys to analyze [what happened with Martinelli] from the clips. For us, it goes pretty quickly. The long ball came, Conor is challenging for it, falls down on the pitch and obviously Martinelli pushes him off the pitch and our players reacted.

"Everyone was unhappy at that moment. It wasn’t a couple of players, but everyone, and rightly so because Conor was on the pitch and to be pushing him off the pitch is not really a good sight.

"We all came together. And we had no clue what really happened, but it doesn’t look great and it doesn’t look great on Martinelli either. We are focusing on Conor now. He will have medical tests coming up in the next 24 hours and we will have to adapt."

Liverpool played with much more intensity than it has for much of this season, even if it didn't offer much in the way of an attacking threat. A point at the likely Premier League champions this season was a good one.

Conor Bradley was seen leaving the Emirates on crutches after sustaining an injury in the 0-0 draw against Arsenal

"It doesn’t look great, but you can come out and try to go one v one and take the risk, but we all know a game is 90 minutes and at a certain point we would have the space to play and that is what happened in the second half," Van Dijk said.

"We were outstanding with the ball. It felt like it could have been more than a point, but I am very proud of the guys against a team that is very much in form.

"No team can run and press for the full 90 minutes like they do in the first 20 to 30 minutes so we had to keep fighting and let them find an idea that they couldn’t, and we knew that they would get midfielders between the center-backs to try and come up with something.

Ryan Gravenberch of Liverpool holds off a challenge from Martin Odegaard of Arsenal.(Image: James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images)

"The guys put a big shift in defensive work and then in the second half in possession we were outstanding and found the right players in between the lines.

"Unfortunately, we couldn’t create big chances but with the players we have right now, missing two proper number nines, the guys still did outstanding, and we will take a point."

Can this draw instill some more confidence in the Liverpool players ahead of the next period of the season? It can surely only help. And given the Reds have shown up in the big games this season, there is still plenty to play for.

"If you play for Liverpool, you have to play with confidence and still be confident even if it has been a very inconsistent season," Van Dijk insisted.

Florian Wirtz reacts after being denied a penalty against Arsenal(Image: Getty Images)

"There is an opportunity every three or four days. You want to go out there and enjoy yourself, but also to show your quality with every moment that you have.

"There was a lot of noise around this game and a lot of talk around this game, and we managed everything pretty well and we had the biggest chance in the end with the ball on the crossbar.

"We have had very good performances throughout the season but not for 90 minutes. We have been very inconsistent, and consistency is the key to being successful and that has been proven.

"That is what we had last year and unfortunately in that sense we haven’t been good enough (this season). The only thing we can do is try and get it back and every three or four days we have an opportunity to do that, but we also need consistency in no injuries and that is unfortunately part of the game, and we are dealing with that as well.

"Winning breeds confidence and always helps. But we are in a position where we don’t want to be. We are the current champions. It has been a very inconsistent and difficult season so far and that is something I am personally not happy with, and we are not happy with as a team, as a club.

"But the only ones that can turn that around is us, with the manager, and that is what we work hard on each and every day. I have the belief and I am fully confident we have the players and staff to turn it around."