Frank de Boer thinks it is unlikely that Virgil van Dijk will recover from injury in time to play for the Netherlands at the European Championships this summer.
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Earlier in the month, Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp stated, “Of course it is not my decision whether Virgil will go to the European Championship or not. But with the information I have at the moment, I say that it is not very likely.”
Speaking at his press conference on Tuesday, De Boer was asked about these comments from Klopp, “As a coach of Liverpool, as a representative of the club, I can very well understand that you are taking this position. Because you don’t want to put any pressure on Virgil at all. We would too. He’s going according to plan. And that plan has always been that it is just a little bit at a time. We know he has eight weeks left. I don’t know if that’s enough.
“I have spoken to him, he is going to the field. There can be all kinds of setbacks. A week or two of setbacks could mean he can’t play games for Liverpool. Then I can imagine that they say: “Nice, but you can focus on next season.” Ultimately, he must have a good feeling himself. I’m glad he’s on the right track.”
De Boer thinks Van Dijk being at the Euro’s would be a bonus, “Anything he can contribute to Liverpool and possibly us would be a bonus. I’m not counting on it right now. But if it did, it would be fantastic for the selection.”
Asked directly if he thinks the Euro’s are a possibility for Van Dijk, “We will see. I’m not putting any pressure on him at all. He must do it himself and must have confidence in it himself. The choice mainly lies with him.”