Van Dijk tells Netherlands teammates how to stop Messi

Virgil van Dijk says the Netherlands must do more in order to stop Lionel Messi and his teammates when they face Argentina on Friday.

The Liverpool defender, who was speaking ahead of their World Cup quarterfinal clash with the South Americans, said the Dutchmen must stop Lionel Messi from making any tangible impact.

Netherlands are seeking a place in the semifinal of the 2022 FIFA World Cup and Argentina stand on their way.

“The difficult thing about him (Messi) is when we are attacking, he is chilling somewhere in a corner or something,” said Van Dijk.

Read Also: Messi scores as Argentina defeat Australia to reach World Cup quarter-finals

“You have to be so very sharp in terms of defensive organisation. They always looked for him to try to make it difficult for us on the counter.

“It is an honour to play against him.

“It is not me against him, or the Netherlands against him, but the Netherlands against Argentina.

“No one can do it on his own, we will have to come up with a good plan.”

35-year-old Messi has so far, scored three goals for Argentina in Qatar, and will much likely be leading his side’s attack for the game against the Netherlands.

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