Virgil van Dijk's response to Lisandro Martinez incident sums up Liverpool captain

Virgil van Dijk's response to Lisandro Martinez's challenge on Dominik Szoboszlai during the first-half of Sunday's Northwest derby perfectly summed up the Liverpool captain.

The Reds put in a dominating display during the first 45 minutes at Old Trafford to head into the break with a two-goal lead thanks to Luis Diaz's cooly-taken double.

But another major talking point from the first-half was Van Dijk's reaction to a nasty challenge from Martinez on Szoboszlai that left the Hungarian midfielder writhing on the floor.

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After the Argentine center-back crunched Liverpool's No. 8 from behind, Van Dijk immediately rushed over to confront the 26-year-old before referee Anthony Taylor prevented him from getting too close.

Nonetheless, once the camera panned to the Dutchman, he could be seen challenging Martinez to "come up here", motioning that the Argentine would not get away with such a challenge if it were him.

Not only did it sum up the fight and desire Van Dijk has for Liverpool, but also his leadership skills and protection he has over his fellow teammates, challenging anyone who dares to hurt one of Arne Slot's players.

The 33-year-old then shows his maturity by turning his back on the situation and heading towards Szoboszlai, who was still on the turf, to make sure he is okay.

Nonetheless, the brief exchange between Van Dijk and Martinez summed up their two very different characters, and perhaps that reflects in the first-half scoreline, with Liverpool doubling its lead just moments after the rash challenge.

Martinez also received a fully-deserved yellow card for his rash challenge, leaving him walking a tightrope for the remainder of the game.