'Do their job' - Virgil van Dijk demands Liverpool management find 'quality imports' in summer transfer window

• Van Dijk issues plea to Liverpool board
• Insists club needs quality signings
• Believes Liverpool can attract top players

WHAT HAPPENED? With a Premier League title charge failing to materialise and their 2022-23 campaign turning into nothing more than a race to make the top four in order to secure Champions League football, Virgil van Dijk has admitted the Liverpool squad needs redevelopment.

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WHAT THEY SAID: Per The Athletic, the Dutchman gave an honest assessment, saying: “Obviously, players are going to leave. That’s been announced so if we want to be where we have been the last five years, we need quality imports, especially with those players leaving. Everyone knows that’s going to be very difficult. It is going to be very difficult to find the right players but the club has to do their job in this case.

“We still have a lot of games to play and we want to be in the Champions League. I think that will also help to attract the best players in the world. Not all the time but it will definitely help.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Misery continues to mount around Liverpool over a frustrating season that has seen Jurgen Klopp's side hamstrung by injury and inconsistency. A 7-0 home win against Manchester United was followed up by a 1-0 defeat away to relegation-threatened Bournemouth. And to add to the frustration, their already struggling midfield has been further weakened by the loss of Stefan Bajcetic through injury.

Roberto Firmino will leave the club this summer after seven years at Liverpool, which many fans hope will prompt a major rebuild in the transfer market. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Naby Keita are also out of contract in a few months.

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WHAT NEXT? Having been knocked out of the Champions League by Real Madrid, the Reds now have a lengthy break before they're back in action in games that could define their season against Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal.