Ally McCoist was incredulous at what he saw on the half-hour mark of Liverpool’s Champions League clash against Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday night.
The Reds rode their luck in the first half at the Parc des Princes as Khvicha Kvaratskhelia had a stunning finish disallowed for a wafer-thin offside, and then Ibrahima Konate avoided a potential red card for barging Bradley Barcola when the PSG striker was bearing down on goal.
There was another big reprieve in the 30th minute when the home side burst forward and looked set to score, only for Alisson Becker to produce an excellent double save and Dominik Szoboszlai to block the subsequent shot.
McCoist shocked by Van Dijk’s defending
McCoist is on commentary duty for TNT Sports for this match, and he was highly critical of Virgil van Dijk’s defending in that latter passage of play as he left Ousmane Dembele with the chance to shoot at goal.
The ex-Rangers striker shrieked: “Where did Van Dijk go? Where did Van Dijk go there? I can’t believe it!…I do not know where Virgil van Dijk went there.”
A rare lapse by Van Dijk in an awful first half for Liverpool
The Liverpool captain’s status as one of the best defenders in world football – perhaps the best – isn’t in any doubt, but the usually impeccable Dutchman had a rare lapse in concentration in that moment.
While he may have been conscious of trying to cover space in the middle of the penalty area, he moved away from Dembele just as the ball was played to the PSG striker, who was thwarted by Alisson.
That uncharacteristic sloppiness from Van Dijk summed up a dreadful first half from the Reds’ perspective, and it was miraculous how the score remained 0-0 at the interval.
McCoist couldn’t believe what he was watching in Paris, and many LFC supporters would’ve felt the same during a sobering 45 minutes for the Premier League leaders.
