Van Dijk 2.0: Celtic can strike gold with young gem who's dominant & pacey

Brenden Rodgers made a surprise return to Celtic in the summer of 2023 for a second spell in the dugout at Parkhead after Ange Postecoglou left to join Tottenham Hotspur.

The Northern Irish manager, who had managed Leicester City in England after leaving the club in 2019, enjoyed a successful first season back at the club in the 2023/24 campaign.

Celtic went on to win the Scottish Premiership title under the former Liverpool head coach and clinched the SFA Cup with a last-gasp goal from Adam Idah against Rangers in the final at Hampden Park.

The board then decided to back the manager in the summer transfer window in 2024, as they swooped to make several big-money additions to the squad.

Celtic first smashed their transfer record to complete the £9.5m signing of Idah from Norwich City on a permanent deal, eclipsing the £9m that was spent on Odsonne Edouard in the summer of 2018.

That record did not last long, though, as the Scottish giants swooped to sign Belgium international Arne Engels from Augsburg for a fee of £11m, with the Hoops potentially hoping that both players will go on to be sold for even more in the future.

Celtic’s top ten sales

The Premiership champions have a rich history of cashing in on talented young players after helping them to develop and improve during their time on the pitch in Glasgow.

Jota, who recently returned to Parkhead on a permanent deal from Rennes, is a good example of that in the current squad, as he left to sign for Al-Ittihad for big money in the summer of 2023, shortly after Rodgers returned to the club.

As you can see in the table above, only Matt O’Riley has been sold for more money than Jota was, after the Danish midfielder’s move to Brighton & Hove Albion.

The Bhoys will now be hoping that Engels and Idah can go on to achieve huge success on the pitch for Celtic in the seasons to come, which could then attract interest from elsewhere, and that could lead to big-money moves away from the club.

They may, however, look back at some of the fees that they received for some players and feel that they could have got more out of those deals, given what they have achieved since being in Glasgow, with Virgil van Dijk being one example of that.

Virgil van Dijk’s soaring market value

Celtic swooped to sign the Dutch central defender from Groningen for a reported fee of £2.6m in the summer of 2013, and he went on to be a rock at the back for the Scottish giants.

The 6 foot 5 colossus went on to score 15 goals in 115 appearances in all competitions, despite only being at the club for two seasons, and won two Scottish Premiership titles.

Neil Lennon signed van Dijk for the Hoops and went on to claim that the central defender had “pace, composure” and “physicality”, with all the attributes to thrive at the top level.

The Netherlands international was, as aforementioned, sold for £13m in the summer of 2015, as Southampton swooped in to secure his services.

His value continued to skyrocket, however, as Liverpool eventually signed him from the Saints at the start of 2018 for a staggering fee of £75m – a fee that was quickly repaid with his performances in their 2019/29 Premier League title-winning campaign.

As you can see in the table above, the giant Dutchman provided a colossal presence at the back for Jurgen Klopp, dominating opposition attackers and offering a goal threat from set plays.

Rodgers could, now, hit the jackpot by unearthing his own version of van Dijk at Parkhead by helping academy graduate Dane Murray to finally fulfill his potential at the club.

Why Dane Murray could be Virgil van Dijk 2.0

The Scotland U21 international first made his breakthrough in the first-team during Ange Postecoglou’s first season at the club, as he made his debut at the age of 17 in the Champions League qualifiers for the 2021/22 campaign.

Murray made his first-team debut off the bench against FC Midtjylland in the first leg before he started the second leg and played the entire 120 minutes of the 2-1 defeat in extra-time.

As you can see in the table above, the 6 foot 4 colossus made a strong impression on his full debut with a dominant performance against the Danish side, winning 79% of his 14 duels, but then had to bide his time as Cameron Carter-Vickers and Carl Stafelt established a partnership under Postecoglou.

The Scottish titan, however, then suffered an ACL injury that kept him out for part of the 2022/23 season and the entirety of the 2023/24 campaign, which stunted his development.

Murray was sent out on loan to Queen’s Park in the Championship for the first half of this season and won 64% of his aerial duels in 17 league matches, before being recalled by Rodgers.

The 21-year-old ace came on against Aston Villa in the Champions League at the end of January and then started and played the full 90 in the 5-0 win over Raith Rovers in the SFA Cup last weekend.

After the healthy win over Rovers, Rodgers hailed Murray as a “really talented” centre-back with “good pace”, whilst also hailing his 6 foot 4 height and his ability to play out from the back.

The Celtic academy graduate is similar to van Dijk in that sense, as he is also a towering presence at centre-back with great recovery speed and ability on the ball, and he still has plenty of time left to develop and improve at the age of 21.

Rodgers also lauded the youngster’s potential and the qualities he offers on the pitch, saying: “I really think that he can be a really top player. “[He had] a real challenge in terms of injuries. “You see him now out on the pitch – his power, his speed, his dominance, & he can play football.”

The Celtic academy graduate is similar to van Dijk in that sense, as he is also a towering presence at centre-back with great recovery speed and ability on the ball, and he still has plenty of time left to develop and improve at the age of 21.

Therefore, Rodgers could hit gold with Murray if he can slowly integrate him into a regular role in the first-team, to help him fulfill his potential and go on to be a van Dijk-esque figure at the heart of the Hoops defence for many years to come.