Virgil van Dijk has revealed he has spoken with Xavi Simons after the midfielder’s red card challenge in Liverpool‘s 2-1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur and insisted his international teammate did not intend to hurt him.

Simons was dismissed in the first half of Tottenham’s clash with Arne Slot’s side after a VAR review showed the 22-year-old had raked his studs down the back of Van Dijk’s calf. His dismissal opened the door for Liverpool to secure a win that moves them up to fifth in the Premier League table, while Spurs dropped to 13th.

“I don’t think there was any intention to hurt me but obviously he hurt me and then the referee and the VAR made the decision to send him off,” Van Dijk said. “I spoke to him. It’s a chat that no-one needs to know.”

Liverpool’s victory came at a price, with forward Alexander Isak being forced off the pitch just moments after scoring the visitors’ opening goal in north London. The 26-year-old looked in a great deal of pain following a coming together with Spurs defender Micky van de Ven, and the Reds now face an anxious wait to discover the extent of his injury.

“Injuries unfortunately are part of football and hopefully with Alex it’s not too bad,” Van Dijk said. “He scored a great goal. It’s too soon after the game to know [the extent of it]. He will need to be assessed.

“We all saw how bad it looked with Alex but hopefully it won’t be too bad.”

Liverpool are now unbeaten in six games in all competitions but came close to conceding a last-minute equaliser against nine-men Spurs, who finished the game strongly.

Reflecting on the performance, Van Dijk said: “The immediate reaction coming off was that it was a chaotic last five to 10 minutes. It wasn’t great but to get the three points is massive. There was nothing wrong up to us conceding a goal. We need to analyse the last part but personally I’m very pleased and it’s on to the next one.

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“When you concede a goal and their fans get behind them like they did, it’s never easy to make the right decisions and find the right solutions. That’s something we can improve but I don’t think it’s worrying. It’s a transition and we need to keep getting better.”

The Dutchman added: “Winning more, getting results, is always positive. Losing games, especially at a club like Liverpool, is always bad. For us it’s about staying calm. Taking each game as it comes.

“Today we won. Now we have a couple of days off. We will recover and then we will focus on Wolves. It will be a tough game. I saw their game against Spurs. Wolves will make it difficult for us and we have to be ready for that.

“First we have Christmas. Being with your family and being healthy are the most important things in life.”

Barcelona defender Andreas Christensen is set for an extended spell on the sidelines after suffering a partial ACL tear in training on Saturday.

Christensen, 29, made his first start since September in Tuesday’s Copa del Rey tie against Guadalajara, scoring the first goal in the 2-0 win.

However, Barça say he suffered an “unfortunate twist of the knee” this weekend, ruling him out of Sunday’s LaLiga game against Villarreal and for the foreseeable future.

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“After tests carried out on the player, a conservative course of treatment has been chosen,” the club said in a short statement. “The player’s recovery time will depend on his development.”

It’s the latest in a string of injuries Christensen, who is out of contract next summer, has suffered over the last two years.

The Danish centre-back was limited to just six appearances in all competitions last season, mainly due to an Achilles problem, while a calf injury sidelined him earlier in the current campaign.

Prior to that, he had made 74 appearances in his first two years at the club after joining from Chelsea on a free transfer, playing a key role as Barça won LaLiga in 2022-23. Christensen’s injury leaves Barça short in the middle of defence, with Ronald Araújo also currently absent after being granted a mental health break.

Pau Cubarsí and Gerard Martín, a converted full-back, are currently the preferred centre-back pairing, but Jules Koundé and Eric García are also options to play there if required.

The shortage could see Barça turn to the transfer market in January. A source told ESPN earlier this month that, providing Araújo returns to action in 2026, they would not be active mid-season, but Christensen’s injury could change that stance.