Richarlison has stirred the pot once again on social media, reigniting his fiery rivalry with The bad blood goes back to 2018 when the two had a confrontation that Richarlison vowed he wouldn't shy away from.
He turned up the heat before the Merseyside derby in June 2020 by taking a jab at the Dutch defender, stating: "Yes he is a great defender, but I've already dribbled past him. For me, there are better defenders."
The latest episode in their ongoing saga occurred during Liverpool's Carabao Cup semi-final win at Anfield, that some argued warranted a red card for an 'elbow' on the striker.
READ MORE:
READ MORE:
Early in the 4-0 triumph, Van Dijk and Richarlison clashed, leaving the ex- player on the ground clutching his face. Referee Craig Pawson stopped play but didn't call a foul, and even after VAR, led by Michael Salisbury, reviewed the situation, the decision stood.
Richarlison, convinced he'd been elbowed by the Liverpool star, has now taken to Instagram to express his feelings. Posting two images of their recent clash, he captioned it pointedly: "This time I spoke in English."
The encounter between Van Dijk and Richarlison wasn't the only one that drew attention during the Anfield match. The Reds' captain later knocked down the forward after another tussle, extending his hand to help him up. However, as the former Everton player reached out, the defender left him in the lurch and strolled off.
Van Dijk's mind will be on other matters right now though, with Liverpool facing a huge game against Manchester City this weekend.
It means the gap at the top could be cut to five points by the time the game gets underway. Speaking after the draw with Aston Villa in midweek, the Liverpool skipper said: "A bit disappointed but we fight. We had chances to win the game, took a bit of a risk at the end so it got more open at times. We take a point and move on and focus on a big one at the weekend, again.
"In possession we did quite well, created good opportunities to score the second. Disappointing to concede from a set-piece. We tried everything and unfortunately it wasn't enough for three points.
"We should have scored 3-2, but credit to Aston Villa, they made it very difficult. We have a very tough one on the weekend again, then we play Newcastle, our focus now will be on Man City, a very difficult game, we know that. Do everything in your power to win games, the focus will be that on Sunday again."
"We should have scored 3-2, but credit to Aston Villa, they made it very difficult. We have a very tough one on the weekend again, then we play Newcastle, our focus now will be on Man City, a very difficult game, we know that. Do everything in your power to win games, the focus will be that on Sunday again."
