Advantage Liverpool as former star warns Van Dijk off Chelsea

Liverpool have been given a small boost in their efforts to prise Virgil van Dijk from Southampton after the Dutchman was warned he wouldn’t be a guaranteed starter at Chelsea.

The Reds remain on the trail of the powerful Dutch defender ahead of a possible January swoop after Jurgen Klopp’s side were blocked by Saints from signing him in the summer.

Chelsea also remain keen on the £60million-rated star, but former Blues defender Graeme Le Saux has told the Dutchman he’d be far from an automatic starter if he made the move to Stamford Bridge.

“If Chelsea are to carry on with playing a back three then they need top quality players in those positions but [Gary] Cahill, [David] Luiz and [Cesar] Azpilicueta are all having decent seasons so far,” the former England left-back, who played over 150 games for Chelsea, told the Daily Star.

“In addition, [Andreas] Christensen has done well having come through the ranks so I think Van Dijk would have quite the fight on his hands in trying to displace those players from the starting XI.

“The bigger issue for me is the need for a strong back-up option to Marcos Alonso.”