Virgil van Dijk is poised to welcome Ronald Araújo as his new centre-back partner at Liverpool, with the deal to secure the Barcelona defender nearing completion. Van Dijk made his first pre-season appearance, playing nearly an hour as Liverpool fell to Monaco 3-2 at Anfield, despite initially leading 2-0. The Dutch defender conceded a penalty just before halftime, which Aleksandr Golovin converted.

Jérémy Jacquet, Liverpool’s recent £50m signing, remained absent as he is cautiously managed following an injury-plagued end to last season with Rennes. Araújo's signing aims to strengthen Andoni Iraola’s defensive lineup, particularly with Joe Gomez and Giovanni Leoni also unavailable.

Van Dijk expressed enthusiasm about new arrivals, stating, "Any player that arrives at the club we will be welcoming. I have no idea if it has been announced or not. I have not seen him so let’s see."

He is optimistic regarding Jacquet's recovery and the potential for further transfers before the deadline on 1 September.

Let’s see what the next couple of weeks are going to bring. Any quality we can add to the team will definitely be welcome so let’s see.

Van Dijk acknowledged the ongoing transition at Liverpool following the sacking of Arne Slot. He confirmed regular communication with Iraola, offering complete support to the new head coach.

He remarked, "We had a great conversation in the first week when it got announced and the main thing for him to know is I am here for him regardless... Hopefully we will be successful this season."

Reflecting on the previous season, Van Dijk noted, "Nothing to take away from Arne and his staff, we had an amazing time together, but obviously last year [was] a disappointment..." He emphasized the need to adapt to the new staff and training methods under Iraola.