Virgil van Dijk is hoping Arne Slot will grant Liverpool a long enough break to recover ahead of his first season in charge, as he awaits a “massive change.”
Sunday’s 2-0 victory over Wolves marked the departure not only of Jurgen Klopp but also of several members of his backroom team, exacerbating the feeling that an era is ending at Anfield.
Van Dijk admits so much change can be “scary” to face, but made the case that a lengthy period of rest offers the best chance of starting life under a new manager in the best possible way.
He said: “Massive change.
“Not only the manager but there are multiple departments within the club that have a lot of staff members leaving and we are at the stage we have to trust the club in this project and this route they are taking and we will see in pre-season how things will look.
“Change is sometimes a little bit scary as you are in the unknown but the only thing you can do is trust the club and we will find out how it looks when we come back and report for pre-season.
“One thing I do know is we need a good break after our tournament because otherwise we will be in trouble as well going into the season.
“Hopefully the new manager will look into that as well.”
Van Dijk went on to reveal that he has been doing his homework on the man who will succeed Klopp this summer, Slot.
And he made no secret of the fact that his compatriot faces a big challenge in stepping up from the Eredivisie to the Premier League.
He said: “I saw a picture [of me playing against Slot], he came on and we won the game and I kept a clean sheet against him!
“Yeah, I did [speak to someone about him]. I am very curious and have a lot of questions all the time.
“We will see, the Premier League and Liverpool is obviously a different ball game but we are here for him, I’ll be here for him whatever he needs.
“It is all about sticking together and give him the chance of showing what he is capable of with the other guys who will come in.
“He probably knows already but everyone knows our expectations are always huge and it is about managing that in the right way and getting the maximum out of all of our players.
“It starts with having a good break and then we are ready to go again.
“Firstly the Euros for me and Copa America for others, some have a little rest, and then we are starting from scratch again.”
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