Virgil van Dijk is a historic figure in orange. The 11th centurion in Dutch history, Van Dijk has captained the Netherlands 85 times, at least 14 times more than any other player in team history.
He's also been very reliable over the years- in the 68 Netherlands games since his last absence due to a torn ACL in 2020, Virgil has been in the squad for 63 and played 62.
It has also been four-and-a-half years since Van Dijk missed the majority of an international window with the Netherlands. The Liverpool captain was rested in June 2022 for the Nations League games against Poland and Wales (twice). In the last 53 months, he missed just one game through suspension and one through rest.
1,613 days
Neither of the two games Van Dijk has missed since June 2022 ended in wins, with Germany (1-0 loss) and Bosnia and Herzegovina (1-1 draw) keeping the Netherlands at bay in the 2024 UEFA Nations League.
It has been 1,613 days since the Netherlands last won a game without Virgil van Dijk as captain, when they beat Wales 3-2 with a 93rd-minute goal from Memphis Depay in June 2022.
The Netherlands will attempt to turn this around on Friday evening, as Frenkie de Jong captains Oranje in the UEFA Nations League meeting with Greece.
