“Nobody knows that, he told me that on the bench” - Liverpool star Van Dijk’s ex-teammate shares details of Manchester United rejecting the Dutchman

Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk's former Southampton teammate Charlie Austin has shared details of the Dutchman being rejected by Manchester United. Van Dijk has been one of the most impactful transfers in the Premier League history but things could have been a lot different.

Liverpool signed van Dijk in a £75 million deal from Southampton in January 2018, with the centre-back helping Jurgen Klopp's side win every piece of silverware. However, Austin shared how Manchester United could have signed van Dijk a year before their arch-rivals secured his services.

As per Austin, the Red Devils were linked with van Dijk in the 2017 summer transfer window but chose to sign Victor Lindelof instead. The former Southampton striker claimed that Manchester United had to make a choice between van Dijk and Lindelof and opted for the latter.

Austin told talkSPORT (via The Mirror):

“I remember the back end of his Southampton career we were on the bench together at Chelsea away. I sat there I said, ‘come on Virgil, what’s going on, surely Man United must’ve been in for you? Massive club in England, etc’. He said, ‘you know what Chaz, in the summer it was like between me or Lindelof and they signed Lindelof’."

“I was like, ‘you are joking!’ Nobody knows that, he told me that on the bench. I couldn’t believe it, I was just as gobsmacked as you. Obviously there was talk in the summer he was going to go there then they’ve gone and taken Lindelof instead," Austin added.

While van Dijk has been a fantastic signing for Liverpool, Lindelof has not quite been a hit at Old Trafford.

The Sweden international has made 246 appearances across competitions for the Red Devils to date, winning just one League Cup.

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Manchester United consider appointing ex-Liverpool coach as new sporting director

Manchester United are reportedly considering appointing former Liverpool coach Lee Congerton as their new sporting director. As per The Telegraph (via Liverpool Echo), they are also monitoring Crystal Palace sporting director Dougie Freedman, Monaco's Paul Mitchell, former AC Milan pair Paulo Maldini and Ricky Massara and Atletico Madrid's Andrea Berta.

The Red Devils are set to go under a major overhaul in the hierarchy following Sir Jim Ratcliffe's £1.3 billion purchase of a 25 percent stake at the club.

Congerton's top signings during his time at Anfield were Daniel Sturridge and Philippe Coutinho for a combined fee of just £20.5 million. He now works as the head of senior recruitment for Serie A side Atalanta.