Wayne Rooney makes Virgil van Dijk feelings clear after awkward Liverpool meeting

Wayne Rooney has been embroiled in a war of words with Virgil van Dijk throughout the season, with the former Manchester United star making his feelings clear on the Liverpool captain

Wayne Rooney has found himself in a war of words with Virgil van Dijk this season(Image: Getty Images)

Not for the first time this season, Wayne Rooney has pointed out Virgil van Dijk’s perceived flaws and claimed the Liverpool captain is not as sharp as in previous years.

The former Manchester United striker and Van Dijk were involved in a high-profile disagreement earlier this campaign, with the pair engaging in a back-and-forth war of words, which culminated in an on-screen meeting after November’s Champions League victory against Real Madrid.

Rooney claimed Van Dijk had made costly errors in the previous weeks and questioned the defender’s leadership qualities and body language. There was also an implication that the Dutchman’s hunger had been dampened somewhat by the lucrative new contract that he signed in April.

Those remarks infuriated Van Dijk, who, after coming face-to-face with Rooney on Amazon Prime, told him live on TV that his criticism had been "over the top at times."

So Rooney’s decision to highlight what he sees as further weaknesses in Van Dijk’s game was bound to draw headlines.

The ex-Everton man said the 34-year-old, along with Mohamed Salah, appears slower this season and that he is not the best center-back in Premier League history.

“With Liverpool and what has happened since last season, Van Dijk and Salah – which I have been vocal about this season – may have lost a yard or two, and they are the two leaders of the team,” Rooney said in the latest episode of The Overlap Fan Debate.

Van Dijk and Rooney disagreed live on TV in November(Image: Amazon Prime)

“The players they have lost around them would make it very difficult for any side to win the title.

“That should not count against Van Dijk and Salah. For me, Salah is one of the Premier League’s greatest of all time, and Van Dijk will be in the conversation as one of the best.

“I don’t think he is the best ever, but in this generation, he is certainly the best center-back, so you cannot hold that against those two players.”

Rooney also spoke about his feud with Van Dijk last week and implied the Liverpool star had taken his comments earlier this season too personally.

“I think Virgil and other top players need to remember that we were once players too. This is not something new. It happens and I'm sure he'll realize that when he stops playing,” Rooney said on the No Tippy Tappy Football podcast.

“Virgil van Dijk will know himself if he's had a good game or a bad game. No one's having personal attacks on players, it's an opinion, what you see. I've been through that probably a lot more than Virgil van Dijk has been through it. That's part of football.

“Players now get the benefit of all the commercial things they do and they earn a lot of money from doing that. They need to understand that pundits have opinions. Sometimes, pundits can go over the top. But as a player, you're judged on performances.”