Suspended Van Dijk leaves gaping hole in Liverpool defence for Bayern visit
Star centre-back banned for Champions League last 16 first leg
Fortress Anfield has become even more impenetrable for visiting sides in the 13 months since Liverpool made Virgil van Dijk the world’s most expensive defender, but the commanding Dutchman’s absence for Bayern Munich’s visit in the Champions League leaves Jurgen Klopp with a selection headache. Van Dijk is banned for the last 16 first leg on Tuesday after being booked three times as last season’s finalists squeezed through the group stages by the narrowest of margins thanks to more goals scored than Napoli. In stark contrast to their Premier League form, in which Liverpool have been beaten just once all season, Klopp’s men lost all three of their group games on the road against Napoli, Paris Saint-Germain and Red Star Belgrade to underline the importance of taking a lead to Germany for the second leg. Three wins at Anfield pulled them through to the last 16 and Van Dijk has yet to taste defeat in 25 Premier and Champions League games on home soil as a Liverpool player, keeping 16 cl...
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