Jurgen Klopp hit out at Manchester United’s decision to sign Paul Pogba for £89m (Picture: Getty)

Jose Mourinho aimed a sly dig at Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp after the Reds agreed a £75million move for Southampton defender Virgil Van Dijk.

The Dutchman will become the most expensive defender in history when he completes his move to Anfield on January 1st.

Van Dijk’s move will smash Liverpool’s transfer record and comes nearly 18 months after Klopp criticised United’s decision to break the world transfer record for Paul Pogba.

United fans certainly found Klopp’s decision to sign Van Dijk hypocritical and Mourinho has challenged the German to explain the deal.

Jurgen Klopp's comments on Paul Pogba's £89m move to Old Trafford

‘If you bring one player in for £100m and he gets injured, then it all goes through the chimney. The day that this is football, I’m not in a job anymore, because the game is about playing together. That is how everybody in football understands it. You always want to have the best, but building the group is necessary to be successful. Other clubs can go out and spend more money and collect top players. I want to do it differently. I would even do it differently if I could spend that money.’

Virgil van Dijk with a Liverpool shirt
Virgil van Dijk will complete his move on January 1st (Picture: instagram)
United broke the world transfer record to sign Pogba (Picture: Getty)

‘You know, I think the one that speaks about it in a specific way has to be Jurgen and if I was one of you I would ask him about his comments about one year ago,” Mourinho said.

‘But not speaking specifically about that case because in Liverpool they do what they want to do and I am nobody to comment on what they do

‘The reality is that if they think that the player is the right player for them and they really want the player they pay his amount or they don’t have the player because that is the way the market is at that time.

‘So when we compare now the amount of money certain managers and clubs spend and try to compare that, I am not saying with 10 years ago but three years ago, is to compare the impossible. You cannot compare the realities.

‘Virgil van Dijk is the most expensive defender in history of football, was he better than [Paolo] Maldini, [Giuseppe] Bergomi or [Rio] Ferdinand? You cannot say that, it’s just the way the market is and you pay or you don’t pay.

‘If you pay obviously you pay a crazy amount of money but if you don’t you don’t have the player. Is as simple as that, so no critics at all about what Liverpool did, is just the way it is.’

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