Training pics of Van Dijk emerge right after Liverpool star pulls out of Euros

Liverpool star Virgil Van Dijk has been snapped getting back to training after pulling out of Holland’s Euro 2020 side.

The defender, who has been out since October following an ACL tear in the Merseyside derby, announced on Wednesday he would not be vying for a place in the Dutch side ahead of the summer tournament.

Ruled out of contention for the rest of the Premier League campaign, the 29-year-old has been working his way back to fitness at the Kirkby training facility.

And images have emerged of Van Dijk continuing his recovery out on the pitch, taking shots at goal while also putting his legs to work with some sprints.

The defender, who arrived for £75m from Southampton in January 2018, has been joined on the injury bench by fellow defenders Joe Gomez and Joel Matip.

It has seen the 29-year-old miss a season where Liverpool’s Champions League spot is at serious risk, sitting seven points off fourth with four games left.

Speaking to the club’s website, the Dutchman said: “Seven months ago I got injured and it’s been a very, very long road.

“I had to take it step by step, as I have done. Things have been going well, I’ve not had a real setback or anything, I’ve just progressed nicely.

“In this latest stage for myself, I have come to a decision that I had to make: would I be involved in the Euros, yes or no?

“With everything that is going on, I feel physically it is the right decision that I’ve decided not to go to the Euros and to go into my last phase of rehab during the off-season.

“So, the full focus will be on pre-season with the club and that’s a realistic goal, so I am looking forward to that.

“Obviously I am very gutted to miss the Euros, to miss the European Championship and leading out my own country there, but things have been like they have and I have to accept it – we all have to accept it.

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  • “I think the decision to not go is the right decision in the grand scheme of things. It’s tough, but I’m at peace with it.”

    Liverpool previously stipulated to the Dutch national team in December that they were not willing to rush Van Dijk in recovery for their Euro 2020 campaign.

    The squad’s captain, who has 38 international caps, will watch from the sidelines as his team begin their tournament against Ukraine on June 13.

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