Liverpool skipper Virgil van Dijk issued a heartfelt plea to the Anfield faithful following the Van Dijk Brentford defeat, urging those who revelled in last season’s glory to stand by the Reds through this turbulent patch.
The Dutch defender’s raw post-match words – “The fans who were CELEBRATING with us last season should STAND BY US now” – cut through the misty Merseyside air like a corner flag snap after Brentford stunned Arne Slot’s side 3-2 at the Gtech Community Stadium on a blustery October Saturday.
With the Premier League table tightening around them in fourth spot, 10 points adrift of leaders Arsenal, Van Dijk’s call echoes the grit that once defined Klopp’s dynasty, now tested in Slot’s teething tenure.
The defeat, Liverpool’s third in eight league games this 2025-26 campaign, unfolded like a slow-burn thriller gone wrong. Brentford, scrappy underdog kings with their bee-line counters, struck first through Dango Ouattara’s cheeky chip in the 5th minute, exploiting a rare lapse from the normally imperious van Dijk.
Kevin Schade clawed another just before halftime, but Milos Kerkez’s 45th-minute goal brought some relief to the Reds. Slot, the Dutch tactician still bedding in after Jürgen Klopp’s fairy-tale farewell, cut a frustrated figure on the touchline, his clipboard snaps betraying a side that’s conceded eight goals in four fixtures.
“We dominated possession but lacked that killer edge,” he admitted in his Sky Sports debrief, eyes scanning the grey skies as if answers hid in the clouds.
Van Dijk, 34 and the rock who’s anchored 250+ Reds outings, didn’t sugarcoat the sting during his LFC TV interview, his baritone laced with that signature steel. Stepping off the Brentford pitch, mud-caked boots in tow, he fixed the camera with a gaze that’s stared down Salah’s crosses and City’s swarms.
Last term’s treble chasers – Champions League semis, Carabao Cup joy – had fans painting the Kop scarlet in delirium, but now? Empty seats whisper at Anfield.
“We’ve given everything for you lot,” van Dijk pressed, his words a bridge over the growing chasm. “The highs were ours together; the lows demand the same loyalty.”
It’s vintage VVD – part captain’s armband, part big brother’s nudge – recalling his 2019 rallying cry amid title tilts. Echoes ripple beyond the Beehive.