Jurgen Klopp will talk to Virgil van Dijk ahead of Southampton return with Liverpool

Van Dijk is one of a number of former Saints returning to St Mary's this weekend

Klopp was not concerned with the amount of Saints players at Liverpool (Getty)

Jurgen Klopp will personally talk to Virgil van Dijk ahead of the Liverpool defender’s return to face former club Southampton.

The Netherlands international became the world’s most expensive defender when he joined Liverpool from Southampton for £75m in January and is in line to come up against his former employers at St Mary’s in their Premier League fixture on Sunday.

Van Dijk is expected to receive a fiery reception from the Southampton supporters given the nature of his Anfield switch.

Liverpool were forced to abandon their pursuit of the Dutch international last summer and publicly apologised for an alleged illegal approach. Van Dijk stayed with the Saints until the transfer window opened again this year although signalled his intentions to leave the south coast club.

“For sure, I will talk to Virgil about it,” Klopp said. “With other players I didn't talk about it because I didn't know or look where they were coming from. I will talk to him of course.

“We are all human beings, we are influenced by circumstances. It will not be a normal game, how can it be? It was a special story most of the time really positive and then the end not that positive.

“I think how football fans are they want to disturb everything we try to do to help their team and they will whistle. Is it nice? I don't think so. Will it have influence? I don't think so but we will see but we cannot make it too big and I don't make it too big.

“We really think much more about the football game and what we have to do and not about how we can avoid different situations from outside because we don't have influence. We have to accept it how it is: loud, not nice maybe, but still we have to play football. We have to go there and play football and nothing else. I don't think anyone at Southampton will say we've stolen him or something.

“It was a very public deal and the numbers, even when they are not 100 per cent right, are I think ok so maybe they are really happy and they say 'Thank you for all the money we have now' – or it could be the other way around.”

Van Dijk became the sixth Southampton player signed by Liverpool since 2014 - at a total cost of £171.5m and Klopp made light of sizable contingent at Anfield.


 Van Dijk will speak with Klopp before playing this weekend 
 (Getty)

“Now it is two times a year – last season it was four times – that we play against Southampton,” he added. “Since I'm in not only the players we have but especially half the Premier League if you ask 'Where is he coming from. The answer? Southampton'. So there are obviously a few more players.

“Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is obviously from there, he took a different way, and Theo Walcott as well. Good players from this area – maybe we should have the scouting department directly in Southampton starting very early!

“Even with centre-halves here we have a problem if you say no Southampton players. We'd only have two left – not too cool!

“It just shows how good the work is they do there and that is more the problem we have at the weekend.”

Klopp, meanwhile, denied that Germany midfielder Emre Can had agreed a contract with Italian side Juventus despite their ongoing pursuit of the player.

“No. Nothing new about that,” Klopp said when asked if Can had signed a deal. “Still everything is possible. There’s nothing else to say. There’s no decision made so far.”