Liverpool win van Dijk race as Southampton set to receive record fee for defender

Liverpool have won the race to land Southampton’s highly sought-after defender Virgil van Dijk, according to reports.

Jurgen Klopp’s men were just one of a host of big clubs chasing the Netherlands international, including the likes of Manchester City and Chelsea.

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But the Times is reporting that the 25-year-old centre back has opted to join the Reds over their Premier League rivals, providing a huge boost for the Merseysiders.

The clubs, however, are yet to agree a fee and it is believed nothing short of £60m will convince the Saints to sell their latest big gun.

If van Dijk was to be sold for that fee, it would see the world record for a defender smashed – a record which belongs to Manchester City, who purchased John Stones last year for a fee around £50m.

It would also represent a significant profit on a transfer signed for just £13m from the Scottish Premier League in 2015.

The former Celtic man made 34 appearances for club and country last season, scoring four times and being sent off once – a home defeat against West Brom.

But the commanding defender’s season was ended prematurely in January when he picked up an ankle injury in the Saints’ 3-0 win over Leicester at St Marys.

There was a string of speculation towards the end of the season that the 6ft4in defender had played his last match for the Saints – and it certainly appears that way now.