Southampton: Ronny Deila didn’t want Virgil van Dijk to join the Saints

In comments which have emerged this morning, former Celtic boss Ronny Deila has said he would’ve preferred Van Dijk to join one of the Manchester clubs.

Now in charge of Valerenga, the Norwegian managed Celtic for two seasons between 2014 and 2016, overseeing the sale of the Dutch defender who was purchased a year before his tenure began with the Scottish giants.

Van Dijk was sold to Southampton in a £13 million deal towards the end of the summer 2015, staying at the Saints for two-and-a-half seasons before joining Liverpool for a huge £75 million in December of 2017.

However Deila has since come out to suggest he tried to push the Dutchman onto two of the league’s big boys back in 2015, offering the now 26-year-old to both Manchester City and United.

"“When he said he was going I told him not to go to Southampton or Sunderland but straight to Manchester City or United. I said to him he was that good. I told City and they regret it now.”"

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This year’s Premier League champions have gained a sour reputation for consistently spending big money of central-defenders, with Aymeric Laporte, Eliaquim Mangala, John Stones and Nicolas Otamendi all joining the Citizens for in-excess of £30 million since they were bankrolled by Sheikh Mansour a decade ago.

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The latter of those four was the defender they instead signed in the window Southampton signed VVD – whilst Otamendi has taken time to find his feet he was perhaps the league’s best centre-half in the season just gone.

"“Virgil was special but when I came in I don’t think he was fit. He had things to work on and in training he was lazy. I told him those things and that he had to work on getting 100 per cent in every session and to take care of his body.” – Deila"

However City may still regret passing up on Van Dijk when they could’ve signed him for just £13 million – a bargain in today’s market.

The 26-year-old is now the world’s most expensive defender following his move to Merseyside. With Liverpool putting together a really impressive side that could challenge for the title, passing up on VVD could come back to bite those at Manchester City.