Virgil van Dijk would reportedly like to experience playing outside of Britain if he ends up leaving Liverpool at the end of this seaosn.
The Dutch center-back, who has apparently been offered a deal worth $22 million net per year by Saudi Pro League club outfit Al-Hilal, has spent the vast majority of his professional career playing in the UK, having moved to Celtic from Dutch club Groningen in 2013, before spending the last 10 years in the Premier League across spells with Southampton and Liverpool.
The 33-year-old’s current Liverpool contract is due to expire at the end of this season, when he will be free to leave the club for nothing.
Sky Sports in Switzerland reports that Van Dijk feels as though his time at Liverpool is up and that he wants one last adventure abroad before hanging up his boots. The report says that Van Dijk would prefer a move to the United States over Saudi Arabia as he is “a fan of American culture”.
Van Dijk is known to be close friends with Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne, who could also make the switch to MLS this summer.
Van Dijk set tongues wagging when he was filmed chatting to PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi and sporting director Luis Camps following last week’s Champions League game at Anfield, and the possibility of him taking on one last top-level challenge in Europe — although not specifically PSG — has not been ruled out.
Learn more
Speaking after the PSG game at Anfield, Liverpool’s captain admitted he does not know where his long-term future lies: “I have no idea [if I’ll be at Liverpool next season]. I still have no idea at the moment. Genuinely. I have no idea at the moment. It is not on hold. Nothing is on hold. There’s just… I keep saying the same thing. Listen, there are 10 games to go (this season) and that is my full focus.
“If there is news, you guys will know it. But I don’t even know myself. Everyone knows there are some conversations behind the scenes but that is about it. At the moment I don’t even know what will happen next year. If anyone says they do know, they are lying to your face.”
