Van Dijk is human after all


Going into Sunday's Community Shield tie, no player had managed to dribble past Virgil van Dijk for an incredible 519 days.

That came to an end in the 2019/20 curtain-raiser at Wembley, as Liverpool lost out to Manchester City via a penalty shootout after a pulsating 1-1 draw in 90 minutes.


​Gabriel Jesus was the man to end that record, as he became the first player since Mikel Merino of ​Newcastle to successfully complete a dribble past the towering Dutch defender.


Van Dijk is human after all. Or he's a complete fraud, depending on who you ask.

Either way, Jesus did something that no player was able to do in the entirety of the 2018/19 season. Even ​Lionel Messi and ​Cristiano Ronaldo, who both came up against the Dutchman last year, were unable to complete this feat.

The moment of wizardry came in the second half, as Jesus brought the ball down on the halfway line, as the Dutchman dived in to make a challenge.

The Brazilian then neatly dragged the ball back and put it to the other side of Van Dijk, allowing him to attempt a dangerous through ball to ​Kevin de Bruyne, which he inadvertently overhit.


Not everybody was convinced on the validity of the so-called 'dribble', however. Particularly those in ​Liverpool.

Then again, supporters of other clubs cast doubt over whether the stat should have stood in the first place and have highlighted examples of where the record may have been broken in the past.

It was a tidy piece of skill, regardless and Jesus made it an even more memorable day when he stroked home the winning penalty in the shootout.

With ​City and Liverpool as the two favourites for the ​Premier League title, they are sure to carry their rivalry long into the season and hopefully entertain viewers once again with another enthralling title race.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Image
Northern Governors Grant Conditions For Restructuring: The Governors of 19 Northern States on Thursday clarified that the region was not opposed to the restructuring of the country. Chairman of the Northern States Governors’ Forum and Governor of Borno State, Ibrahim Shettima stated this while speaking at a meeting of the Governors and traditional rulers in Kaduna. Shettima said any restructuring should be done within acceptable criteria and must be fair to all component parts of the country. He said a final decision on the position of the North would be taken on Friday when governors of the 19 Northern States meet again in Kaduna. He said: “It is also my expectation that at the end of this meeting today (yesterday) and, God willing, tomorrow’s (today) meeting of the governors, the forum and our esteemed royal fathers will adopt a consensus position on restructuring of the country that will be reflective of the general overall interest of the people of Northern Nigeria and
Read more

El-Zakzaky demanded ‘a five-star hotel’, Nigerian govt react

Image
The Federal Government has said the leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), Ibraheem El-Zakzaky, was violating the bail conditions granted him and his wife by the Federal High Court, Kaduna. Reacting to an audio message in which El-Zakzaky complained about the increased security presence around him in the Indian hospital, FG said El-Zakzaky was “becoming uncontrollable.” A statement issued in Abuja on Wednesday by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information and Culture, Grace Gekpe, described El-Zakzaky’s claim as “a foul cry” that should be disregarded. She explained that the Islamic cleric started displaying “ulterior motives against laid down procedures” when he and his wife had a stopover in Dubai. El-Zakzaky was also said to have rejected the Medanta Hospital, India, which he chose, but instead, wanted to be taken to a five-star hotel. According to Gekpe, the situation got to a stage that the Indian authorities expressed their readiness to return him to
Read more
Image
Donald Trump - Biafra: US breaks silence on growing tension in Nigeria The United States Diplomatic Mission has broken silence on growing tension in the country. In a tweet on Friday, the United States Mission to Nigeria said that it is joining well-meaning Nigerians to sue for peace, calling for an end to violence in the country. “The U.S. Mission to Nigeria joins the calls of Nigerian leaders and citizens across the country for an end to violence.#OutofManyOne,” the Tweet reads. The call by the U.S. Mission came the same day South East governors held an emergency meeting in Enugu to address issues of security in the zone, especially the recent clash between members of IPOB and the military in Abia state. The military had earlier started an operation code-named Operation Python Dance in the South East with the aim of ridding the region of criminals and other activities threatening the security of the area. This has led to an altercation among many with fear of communal
Read more