Liverpool have been told that they made a mistake with Virgil van Dijk in the summer as he is “past his sell-by date” and “fading fast”.

Van Dijkand Mohamed Salah penned new two-year contracts towards the end of last season to commit to Liverpool until the end of the 2026/27 season.

It was widely accepted that these extensions were deserved, as Van Dijk and Salah were superb for Liverpoolas they won their 20th Premier League title last season.

However, Van Dijk and Salah have massively declined at the start of this season, as they have contributed to Liverpool’s sudden slump into a crisis.

Over the weekend, Liverpool were dominated in a 3-0 loss against Man City at the Etihad, with this result leaving the Reds in eighth place in the Premier League table during the international break.

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Now, presenter Richard Keys has argued that they made a mistake with Van Dijk in the summer as he is “fading fast” while they “didn’t do surgery where it was really needed”.

“I’m reading Arne Lost [Slot] fears Liverpool have already blown their title chances. I’ve got news for you Arne. You have. You can’t win it now. Not after losing five games already,” Keys wrote in his blog.

“It’s been a pathetic defence, but we shouldn’t be surprised really. I said all last season Liverpool weren’t great champions. Of course, they take credit for having won it, but there wasn’t really a challenge.

“They stumbled over the line, almost like a tired marathon runner. Changes had to be made, but they didn’t do surgery where it was really needed.

“Van Dijk is fading fast. His powers aren’t what they once were. He’s past his sell-by date and should really have been moved on, but Liverpool didn’t sign a replacement.”

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Keys has also explained why he thinks Liverpool’s new signings have struggled at the start of this campaign.

“They spent all their money on forwards, some of whom look as lost as their coach,” Keys added.

“Those signings only really confused Slot. He still doesn’t know his best team and Arsene Wenger was right when he told us on BeINSPORTS last week that [Slot] blew his own midfield up by bringing in Wirtz.

“Wirtz wants to play as a 10. Apparently [Slot] told him he could. That meant a complete change in system and it hasn’t worked. In recent games [Slot] has gone back to a more familiar system and line-up – squeezing Wirtz in on the left-side, but that hasn’t worked either.

“Wirtz shouldn’t have played at City. But [Slot] has got to play him. He’s got to back him. But that decision is costing Liverpool.

“United, City and Chelsea have all won the title at different times losing six games. Blackburn won it after losing seven, but that was in a different era.

“Six is the maximum now, which means Liverpool would have to be nearly perfect for the remaining 27 games. Can you see that? No. Nor can I.”