Following Virgil van Dijk odd defending for Manchester United’s opening match against Liverpool, the hashtag Van Disney has been trending on Twitter.
After a strong opening, Jadon Sancho gave the home team the lead in the 16th minute. The England international displayed incredible control as he rolled the ball into the corner after some lovely combination plays down the left side between Christian Eriksen and Anthony Elanga.
But from the standpoint of Liverpool, that was a terrible goal to give up. Fans weren’t too impressed by Van Dijk’s appearance as he put his hands behind his back and appeared to be frozen, not to mention the fact that James Milner and Alisson Becker were both immediately dispatched to the shops.
Explained Why Is Virgin van Dijk Called Van Disney And Meaning As Liverpool CB Meme Trends On Twitter
That composure 🤤
Calm as you like from Jadon Sancho and Manchester United lead at Old Trafford! 💥 pic.twitter.com/7ZkB2jf1FO
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) August 22, 2022
After the goal, Milner and Van Dijk were seen having a heated dispute, with the former appearing quite animated.And for the second time this year, “Van Disney,” a new jest used by many to criticise Liverpool’s No. 4, was receiving a lot of online feedback:
pic.twitter.com/KSeKtVkoY4
WHAT WAS VAN DISNEY DOING??😭😭— 𝙇𝘾𝙁𝘾𝙃𝘼𝙍𝙑𝙎 🦊 (@lcfcharvs) August 22, 2022
Van Disney during that Sancho goal pic.twitter.com/2qOa8yj4CH
— maybe:isaac (@IA37__) August 22, 2022
Van Disney with his nonchalant defending LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL
— Dios Mio (@Farda_Alphonso) August 22, 2022
What was Van Disney doing 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 he froze
— Amit Zohar (@amitttrmfc) August 22, 2022
Van Disney pic.twitter.com/07fyorlrMA
— Peché Africa🇿🇦 (@peche_africa_) August 22, 2022
Sancho cooked both Van Disney and James Milner pic.twitter.com/nfxHitCDyv
— Omar Aref 🇦🇪 (@LosB1ancos_) August 22, 2022
Van Disney using his aura to make the shot not go into the goal🥶 pic.twitter.com/pfa7nNU7fe
— W✰ (@wandxrs) August 22, 2022
Not a good start off the season for Van Dijk
Aleksandar Mitrovic of Fulham, who became the first player to dribble past Van Dijk since he joined Liverpool in January 2018, skinned him in Liverpool’s season opener. Van Dijk, widely regarded as the finest in the world in his position, had a bad performance and conceded a penalty.
And against United, who caused all kinds of issues with their energy, aggression, and quickness in attack with players like Elanga, Sancho, and Marcus Rashford, he and his Liverpool teammates looked very shaky at the back. Early on, after being sent in from behind, Elanga hit the post, giving the impression that United posed a threat whenever they advanced.
As a result of Joel Matip and Ibrahim Konate’s injuries, Joe Gomez was paired with Van Dijk at the centre of Liverpool’s defence. It was the same kind of defence on display today as it was in that appalling 7-2 loss to Aston Villa in October 2020, the last time they started together in the Premier League.
Man United perform admirably.
At a lively Old Trafford, Manchester United put on an excellent performance to overcome Liverpool and earn manager Erik ten Hag his first Premier League victory. Ten Hag made the audacious choice to bench captain Harry Maguire and Cristiano Ronaldo, and he was rewarded with a performance that dispelled the crisis-induced gloom around Manchester United while keeping Liverpool winless so far this year.
After 16 minutes, Jadon Sancho rightfully gave United the lead with excellent control and calmness, and eight minutes into the second half, Marcus Rashford capitalised on an Anthony Martial pass to break free and beat Alisson.
With nine minutes left, Mo Salah scrambled in a header to set up a frantic finish, but United held on to give Ten Hag the kind of victory he needs to leave his mark at Old Trafford.
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