Van Dijk will only get better at Liverpool, says Karius

Virgil van Dijk is a "top player" and will only get better at Liverpool, goalkeeper Loris Karius said.

Published : Feb 13, 2018 09:10 IST

Liverpool goalkeeper Loris Karius praised Virgil van Dijk and believes the defender will only get better as he settles with the Premier League giants.

Karius and Van Dijk helped Liverpool keep their 11th clean sheet of the league season in a 2-0 win over Southampton on Sunday.

The German shot-stopper has liked what he has seen from Van Dijk, who headed to Anfield in January in a deal reportedly worth £75million.

"Virgil has played quite a bit now and we're getting more used to each other – that's important for the team," Karius said, via the Liverpool Echo.

"He's a top player – that's why Liverpool paid the price they did for him. Of course he has to adapt a bit because our style is so different. We defend high. He needs to get used to Dejan [Lovren] and Joel [Matip].

"But the more he gets used to our style, he's finding his feet more and more.

"It's good to see and as a keeper you feel comfortable having players like that in front of you. The clean sheet was great for all of us."

Karius, 24, has now made eight league starts for Liverpool this season, having taken Simon Mignolet's place as first choice.

It was expected Mignolet would still have a spot in cup competitions, including the Champions League.

However, manager Jurgen Klopp offered no guarantees over the Belgian's place ahead of the last-16 first leg against Porto.

"To be honest I have not made the final decision but it is not the same situation as it was," Klopp said.

"A good one will play. But I haven't made the decision so far."

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