Virgil van Dijk says pundits have ‘duty of responsibility’ to current players

“I feel like the ex-top players have a responsibility to the new generation,” Van Dijk said.

“Criticism is absolutely normal and part of the game, and I think it should stay that way.

“But sometimes criticism also goes into being clickbait, saying things to provoke things, and without thinking about the repercussions for the mental side of players, and especially the younger generation, who are constantly on social media.

“You can say, ‘yeah, you shouldn’t be on social media’ – that’s what I’ve mentioned [to them] loads of times.

“There is always this thing of when you play a good game, younger players check all the positive praises, but when you have a worse game, and you’re getting bullied all over social media, or you’re getting bad criticism, it can really affect you.

“I’ve seen that in certain players in the past, and currently as well, because it’s just not easy.”