Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk ruled out of Sheffield United game - and why Oli McBurnie will be glad

The reigning Premier League champions confirmed over the weekend that Virgil van Dijk, their influential centre-back, is going under the knife for surgery on his knee after a challenge by Everton's Jordan Pickford forced him out of Sunday's Merseyside derby at Goodison Park.

The Dutchman is certainly out of this weekend's game against the Blades, and is likely to be joined on the sidelines by first-choice goalkeeper Allison Becker.

So the Reds may face United with a makeshift partnership of Joel Matip and Joe Gomez, who have never started a game together at centre-half.

Midfielder Fabinho has also previously played at centre-half.

One man in particular who will be happy not to not face van Dijk is United's Oli McBurnie, if he is selected to face Klopp’s men.

"I bounced off van Dijk and realised I needed to do a bit of bench press,” McBurnie revealed in an interview last year, describing the biggest difference between life in the Championship and in the Premier League.

"He had everything and I felt like a little girl against him.

"I'm skinnier than a lot of defenders so when the ball goes up in the air, I give them a nudge in the air and that's always worked, at any level.

"I tried it with van Dijk. He was off-balance, and I still bounced straight off him. I thought: 'I'll have to go and play off Joel Matip here instead!'."

Thank you for reading this article, one of dozens we publish every single day to provide you with the best, most up-to-date and most informative coverage of YOUR club. This depth of Blades coverage costs, so to help us maintain the high-quality reporting that you are used to from the football team at The Star, please consider taking out a subscription to our new discounted sports-only package. You'll find all the details HERE. Your support is much appreciated. Chris Holt, Football Editor