Virgil van Dijk wasn’t named in Southampton‘s travelling throng for Saturday’s friendly against Saint-Etienne, nor will he feature in the training in southeastern France that precedes it.
Following manager Mauricio Pellegrino’s concession that the Dutchman was training separately from the rest of the squad after expressing a desire to leave, Van Dijk was left off the 25-man squad heading out for an intensive training camp in Evian-les-Bains.
Related – Southampton boss Pellegrino: Lone trainer Van Dijk ‘wants to leave’
Maya Yoshida will represent the most experienced centre-half at Pellegrino’s disposal on the trip.
Van Dijk is no doubt aware of how many clubs are interested in signing him this summer. Liverpool may revive its pursuit for the 26-year-old after backing away in June over accusations from Southampton of tapping up the player. This alleged illegal approach for the defender came in the wake of reportsthat Van Dijk had chosen to join Liverpool over Chelsea and Manchester City, despite Southampton receiving no offer from the Merseyside outfit.
Both Pellegrino and club transfer guru Les Reed have voiced reluctance in letting Van Dijk depart, but that resolve was overcome when Adam Lallana, Dejan Lovren, Rickie Lambert, Nathaniel Clyne, and Sadio Mane left for Liverpool in previous summer windows.
“None of those players are for sale. I can’t make it any plainer than that and that’s the way we mean to go forward,” Reed said towards the end of June.
“We built this squad over some time and think we have a strong squad. We will fine-tune it but, other than that, we are looking forward to a very competitive season next year and we plan to go forward on that basis.”
Southampton has been one of the quieter Premier League teams in the window so far – only 21-year-old Jan Bednarek has arrived from Lech Poznanon a five-year contract – although The Mirror’s Neil Jones speculated back in April that Liverpool outcast Mamadou Sakho could be lined up as Van Dijk’s replacement.
The Saints begin their 2017-18 Premier League season with a visit from Swansea City on August 12.
Squall Lionheart 