Virgil van Dijk and Liverpool look to new season with optimism

The Dutchman's career, which had taken him from his homeland via Celtic and Southampton to the lofty position of arguably the best centre-back in the world, was cruelly put on hold on 17 October last year.

Liverpool's Roberto Firmino celebrates with Virgil van Dijk after scoring their side's second goal during the Premier League match at Carrow Road, Norwich. 

It wasn’t his best performance, not by a long way, but in the circumstances it was certainly one of the most important of his entire career.

The sight of Virgil van Dijk in a Liverpool shirt once again and at long last stirred the emotions of the fans as much as the goals at Carrow Road, scored by Diogo Jota, Roberto Firmino and, inevitably given it was the start of the season, Mo Salah.