“It’s not like I’m a die-hard United fan” – Max Verstappen says he’s in constant touch with Manchester United’s rivals despite supporting Red Devils

F1 champion Max Verstappen has revealed that he is a Manchester United fan but is close to Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk. He added that the Premier League is easily the best in the world and thinks Manchester City are winning a bit too much.

F1 heads to England this weekend as the Silverstone GP is up next in the calendar. Verstappen is leading the charts this season and has won seven of the nine races so far.

Speaking to talkSPORT ahead of this weekend's grand prix, Verstappen revealed that he is a Manchester United fan. However, he does not claim to be a die-hard fan of the Red Devils and has admitted to having contact with Van Dijk and other Liverpool players. For context, Liverpool and Manchester United are arch-rivals for several decades now in English football.

He said:

"I'm a United fan. It's not like I'm a die-hard United fan. I mean, I'm talking to Virgil [van Dijk] and Liverpool players, stuff like that. For me, I enjoy it when I see a great football match and I think the Premier League is the best league out there. It has a lot of great players. I think Man City are winning a little bit too much, but then again, I can say the same thing about us [Red Bull]. The other teams need to get better."

Manchester United finished third in the Premier League last season. They also reached the final of the FA Cup and won the Carabao Cup. The Red Devils will want to fight for the league title in the upcoming season.

They have signed Mason Mount from Chelsea and are looking to add Andre Onana from Inter Milan, as per The Athletic.

Manchester United fan Max Verstappen realistic about The Netherlands

Manchester United fan Max Verstappen has admitted that it is not the best time to be a Netherlands fan as they are not doing well in international football. He added that they need to back coach Ronald Koeman and believes that the manager can find the right combination ahead of the next big tournament.

When asked about the EURO 2024, Verstappen claimed that he was not going to back his nation to win the league as he was realistic. He believes that they can do well once the manager finds the right tactic. He said:

"It's a tough one, I think. At the moment we're still not where we want to be. With Koeman back in charge I hope it's going to go down well. I'm a big fan but I'm also realistic. At the moment we're not the best national team out there, but you don't need to be the best team out there if you play well together, you don't need one superstar, it's all about getting your tactics right. Let's see, they just need to play a bit more together instead of swapping players in and out."

Netherlands reached the quarter-finals in the 2022 Qatar World Cup, where they lost to eventual winners Argentina in a penalty shootout (4-3) after the game ended 2-2 after extra time.