Virgil van Dijk on Florian Wirtz chat, Liverpool transfer spend and message for Hugo Ektike

Virgil van Dijk on Florian Wirtz chat, Liverpool transfer spend and message for Hugo Ektike

Interview with Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk on the club's pre-season tour of Hong Kong

Virgil van Dijk of Liverpool reacts during the Liverpool Pre-Season Training at Kai Tak Stadium on July 24, 2025 in Hong Kong, China (Image: Yu Chun Christopher Wong/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images)

When talks were significantly stepped up between Liverpool and Virgil van Dijk over a new contract earlier this year, the Reds captain was promised that a major transfer window was approaching at Anfield.

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And having signed a new two-year extension in April, it is fair to say the Premier League champions have kept to their word. Van Dijk has sat back and watched on in recent weeks while the club's recruitment department have spent the thick end of £300m this summer, with more arrivals planned.

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It started with the triggering of Jeremie Frimpong's release clause from Bayer Leverkusen at the beginning of June, with the Netherlands international arriving in a £29.5m deal to effectively take Trent Alexander-Arnold's spot at right-back, even if the versatile Dutchman is not being viewed as a typical like-for-like replacement for the now Real Madrid star.

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That was followed swiftly by the £116m club-record deal for Frimpong's Leverkusen team-mate Florian Wirtz, with the Reds fending off interest from Manchester City, Bayern Munich and belatedly Real Madrid for the Bundesliga player of the season.

The long-standing interest in Milos Kerkez at Bournemouth saw a £40m agreement reached with the Cherries, while Giorgi Mamardashvili's £29m transfer, that was agreed with Valencia last year, was also ratified alongside deals for £1.5m Armin Pecsi and Freddie Woodman, who joins from Preston North End as a free agent to boost the home-grown quota.

The £79m deal with Eintracht Frankfurt for striker Hugo Ekitike saw the France Under-21 international complete a medical in London on Tuesday before he was flown out to Hong Kong to meet his new colleagues at the end of their open-training session at the Kai Tak Stadium on Thursday.

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As show of ambitions go, it's been quite the few weeks for a Liverpool team who already entered the window on the back of a season where they won the title by 10 points, having wrapped it up with four games to spare.

For Van Dijk, the idea that "they're planning to make it a big summer", as he put it in April, has been proven correct.

"Yeah, I don't think it's been a bad transfer window in terms of the additions that we have made and the money we've spent," Van Dijk says, speaking in Hong Kong after Thursday's training session. "The club is obviously trying to improve our squad.

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"The Premier League is incredibly strong so it's only right that we have to improve too. We know we have a very good team but additions are always a plus and I've been really impressed with how they have settled in.

"Showing their qualities on the pitch is important, but also how they are off the pitch in terms of settling in with us. I'm sure if you asked them they would say they feel very welcome so far. They have clicked really well with the group.

"Listen, there are no guarantees in terms of retaining the title or winning more trophies. But improving the squad is always a good thing. Adding quality helps to raise the standard in both training and games hopefully.

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"We've all seen it over the years, the team which is the most consistent during the season wins titles, and that's the aim we have. We want to show our quality in every single aspect of the game. That's a very tough job. If it was easy then you'd have a lot of teams up there until the end."

Of all the excitement that surrounds the raft of new arrivals, it is surely Wirtz whose capture has set most pulses racing. The 22-year-old is the jewel of German football and had been wanted by Bundesliga giants Bayern before the player himself was believed to have been blown away by the level of detail planned for him by Slot.

The Reds will pay an initial £100m for the attacking midfielder, with a further £16m of add-ons and his arrival will offset the creative shortfall of Alexander-Arnold's departure, with Wirtz expected to feature predominantly as something of an archetypal No.10 in the midfield system.

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"When I joined the club I said it, I don't think there's a better place to be than Liverpool," Van Dijk adds. "I really feel that way. We had a fantastic season and I feel like this can only become better.

"When Florian spoke to the club and certain players, I spoke to him as well a little bit, I'm sure he got a feel for it. And then he made a decision. Coming here, he can really make an impact in my opinion. But it's also down to him in terms of showing it every single day. He's getting there and it's good to see. I spoke to him, when that was is between me and him. I said to him: 'Liverpool is the place to be.'"

On Ektike, who may feature on Saturday when AC Milan are met at the Kai Tak Stadium, Van Dijk says: "We just had a very brief chat on the pitch at the end of training. I'll have a proper sit down with him tonight. The message is 'the hard work starts now'. That's it. You're playing for one of the biggest clubs in the world now. The pressure will be on you. You need to show your qualities."

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