Liverpool’s early season under Andoni Iraola has been less about instant fluency and more about finding out what this team can live with. Virgil van Dijk sits right at the center of that adjustment. He is still the reference point at the back, but the demands around him have changed, and the numbers now suggest he is settling into them after a difficult start.
That was not obvious on the opening weekend, when Liverpool drew 2-2 with Newcastle and Van Dijk had a rough introduction to the new setup. Inside five minutes, William Osula slipped Anthony Elanga through for the opening goal after Van Dijk failed to step out and stop the counter-attack. For a defender whose value has always rested on control, that was a reminder of how punishing Iraola’s high-pressing style can be when the timing is even slightly off.
But the broader picture is more encouraging. According to Gradient Sports, Van Dijk’s average overall grade across the opening four weeks was 74.6. Over the next five weeks, that figure rose to 79.9. In a small sample, that is still a meaningful shift, and it suggests the 35-year-old is beginning to handle the rhythm of a system that asks centre-backs to defend more space, make sharper decisions and live with more transition risk.
What Van Dijk is learning
The challenge is not just physical, even if age is part of the conversation. It is structural. Iraola’s approach leaves defenders far from goal more often than they would like, and that changes everything about how a back line operates. Van Dijk has already said the team must find the right balance between playing through the press and going direct, and that balance has become the clearest theme of Liverpool’s season so far.
Last month, after the fixture against Chelsea, he made the point plainly: this is a different era, and the team has to adapt. They need to create chaos, win second balls and compete in battles, but they also have to know when to bypass pressure and simplify the game. That is not a contradiction. It is the job description.
The 3-2 loss at Fenerbahce in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday fits that same pattern. Liverpool were not just beaten; they were pulled into the kind of match that tests structure, composure and recovery speed all at once. For a side still learning when to play through pressure and when to go direct, those margins matter.
Why the numbers matter
The rise from 74.6 to 79.9 does not mean Van Dijk has solved every issue. It does, however, show that the early difficulties were not proof that the system would overwhelm him. If anything, the trend suggests he is adjusting as the team adjusts, even if the process is slower than Liverpool would like.
That is the broader story here. A defender of Van Dijk’s profile can still thrive in a high-pressing, high-risk structure, but only if the team around him reaches the right balance quickly enough. Liverpool are not there yet. The improvement is real, though, and it matters because this kind of system tends to expose hesitation fast and reward clarity just as quickly.
So the question is no longer whether Van Dijk can fit Iraola’s Liverpool. The better question is how much of the team’s next phase depends on him making that adjustment in real time. The early evidence says he is moving in the right direction, even if the match results still show how much work remains.
