Graeme Souness has summed up how just about every Liverpool fan is feeling following the news of Virgil van Dijk's lengthy injury lay-off.
The Dutch defender was forced off in the opening 10 minutes of Saturday's Merseyside derby, after a horror challenge from Jordan Pickford that went unpunished.
After undergoing a scan on Sunday, the full ramifications of Van Dijk 's injury have been laid bare as the former Southampton man will gets set for an operation.
While a definitive timescale cannot be drawn out, there is a real risk that Van Dijk could be sidelined for the remainder of the season - which is a huge blow to Liverpool.
Van Dijk's absence will be felt by Jurgen Klopp's side, as his arrival at Anfield was a key moment in the club's transition into the behemoth that they now stand as domestically and on the continent.
As a result, Souness has stated that Van Dijk would have been the one player Liverpool would not want to be without for the campaign.
“I’m obviously a Liverpool supporter, and I know Jamie [Carragher] will agree with this, but if you were to ask me at the start of the season who the one player you don’t want to miss a large chunk of the season," he told Sky Sports.
"People might say Mane, or Salah, it would be one of those three, with van Dijk - for me, it would be van Dijk.
"Liverpool still have enough goals in the team without those two, but at the back, he’s the catalyst for everything they do, for getting up the field, and holding the line when it’s the correct time to hold it and drop off when it’s the right time to drop off.
"It’s a major blow, it’s the last thing Liverpool needed.”
