Southampton centre-back Wesley Hoedt has spoken of his excitement to link up with compatriot Virgil van Dijk.
The Netherlands international made his Saints debut last Saturday in a 2-0 defeat to Watford, and told the Daily Echo of his excitement to be linking up with such a highly-regarded defender.
We’re both Dutch so that’s an advantage and we’re very similar so we could have a very good partnership. Not only us but we have three other central defenders who are really good so that’s nice. It’s always good to have competition.
Hoedt, who signed for £15.4 million from Serie A outfit Lazio in the summer, is likely to be one of Mauricio Pellegrino’s two preferred centre-backs this season, and the return of Van Dijk to first-team contention is likely to mean that the Argentine’s defence picks itself.
Van Dijk made his return to competitive football with Saints’ Under-23 side on Monday night, as they were comfortably defeated by Aston Villa’s Under-23s in a 4-0 defeat.
Whether or not the former Celtic man will be available for selection for Southampton’s next Premier League outing against Crystal Palace on Saturday remains to be seen.
Regardless though, Hoedt is evidently excited to partner his compatriot in a Southampton shirt.
