Virgil van Dijk went from teenage dishwasher to a 75 million pound defender
As a teenager at Willem II's academy, Virgil van Dijk washed dishes part-time because he had no contract and needed money. The club decided he had too many limitations and let him go for nothing at 19. Eight years later Liverpool paid 75 million pounds for him, then a world record for a defender.
Born in Breda in 1991 to a Dutch father and an Afro-Surinamese mother, he grew up playing wherever he could, including concrete street cages, before joining Willem II at eight. He was an unconvincing right-back until a growth spurt of around 18 centimetres at 17 moved him to centre-back. Even then the reserve coach judged him too limited for the first team.
Martin Koeman scouted him for Groningen, who signed him on a free transfer in 2010. Staff there first thought he was worn out from heavy academy use, and he debuted as a late substitute in May 2011. Soon after turning 20 he spent 13 days in hospital following emergency surgery for advanced appendicitis complications that doctors had initially missed, and it took months to recover.
His value then climbed at each step. Celtic paid about 2.6 million pounds in June 2013, with Groningen keeping a tenth of any future sale, and he won the Scottish title in both his seasons. Southampton spent a reported 13 million on the final day of the 2015 window, making him the priciest Dutch defender since Jaap Stam. After Liverpool apologised to Southampton for an illegal approach and he handed in a transfer request, the record move came through in January 2018.
At Liverpool he reached consecutive Champions League finals in 2018 and 2019, winning the second, and he went on to captain both the club and the Netherlands. He led his country to the first Nations League final, a World Cup quarter-final in 2022 and the Euro 2024 semi-finals.
Source: Virgil van Dijk
