Being a pot washer at a restaurant in Breda to becoming one of the best defenders in the world is an amazing story of determination and hard work. Ten years ago, when Van Dijk was 17, he would ride his bike to the Uncle Jean restaurant in Breda to work as a pot washer. He made an average of four euros an hour.

Even though Jacques Lips, the owner of the restaurant, told him to give up on his dream of becoming a professional football player, Van Dijk stayed committed to his goals.

He has come a long way since then, and his teammates named him Player of the Year. He grew to be 6 feet 4 inches tall during his 16th year of growing.

As Van Dijk worked at the restaurant and went to Willem II’s school, he put in a lot of time at the gym to improve his football career. When he was sixteen, he had a growth spurt and became an amazing six feet four inches tall. All of his hard work had paid off. With the money he earned, he bought himself and his friends McDonald’s meals and also took driving lessons to give himself more ways to get to work.

He was grateful for having a job as a professional football player and for having a job in general. Van Dijk has grown up a lot for a 22-year-old by learning to enjoy the good things in life through hard times.

In 2006, Willem II was too slow and big for Celtic, and the manager almost let go of the £2.6 million summer grab. When he could start working again at Groningen after three years, he had lost 2.5 stone and had to stay in the hospital for 12 days because of a bad stomach infection. On his lower belly, you can still see the scar.

After spending some time in the hospital at the start of his journey, Virgil van Dijk is glad to live the football life.

It was easy to see why he fell on Hogmanay; he is one of the young, up-and-coming players in European football right now.

“I went to church to say some prayers on New Year’s Eve after spending the night with my girlfriend until 10 o’clock,” he said. I said prayers for my partner, my family, and everyone else I care about.

met the team at the hotel for the next day’s game.

I used to go to church every Sunday when I was younger, but as I got older, I stopped. However, I think that prayer has helped me get through some tough times.

When asked to remember the hard times, he lifts his Celtic training shirt and shows off two scars.

One is on the right side of his belly and is about three inches long. The other one goes up and down from his belly button to below his waist.

“This one was tried for surgery,” he said, referring to the scar on the right. But they weren’t able to, so they shut it down and moved their business to this centre.

“The surgery was great.” There was a pus-filled sac in my stomach.

“I was really sick.” The doctors thought it was very dangerous.

I believe I lost around 33 pounds (15 kg). Because my body was poisoned, the cyst almost burst. I had to stay in the hospital for twelve days because it was scary. Thank goodness it didn’t go off.

But many lines were put into my body. It was scary because it seemed to happen out of the blue.

Since they thought it was just a stomachache, they gave me the wrong medicine.

After that, I felt sick for two days with something green. My gut turned into mush. The doctors did a number of pee tests on me when I got back to them.

She said, “They didn’t find anything, but I was in too much pain to stay home. I had to go to the hospital the next day.”

“They told me I needed surgery.”

A tough time: Van Dijk was very sick and needed surgery to get rid of an abscess in his belly.

As he remembers, the procedure took place on April 1. It was a big deal for the 19-year-old football player to make his league start. The date will always be important, that much is clear. Also, on June 23, he realised he was not at all ready to go back.

“When I started training again, I was pretty bad.” He said, “I had no muscles, no power, nothing.” I did play in every practice game, though, and got better over time. It felt so good to be back.

In just three years, Celtic and Ajax were both interested in him. Neil Lennon moved, but Frank de Boer moved back.

After signing a £2.6 million deal, Van Dijk has been the best summer signing. He is quick, strong in the air, and a smart reader of English game reports. On Wednesday, he said that Arsenal and Manchester City are now showing interest.

Van Dijk says he is “flattered,” but he is still not sure. He learned to live in the present even before the injury.

When he was 16, he said, “I was a little slow at Willem II, and they thought I was too small.” They played me at right back and almost got me sent off.

“I was sixteen at the time.” When they talked about moving me away, I thought it was a very dangerous time.

“I was one of the team’s worst players.” I wasn’t very good at it. I wasn’t very good because I was small and moved slowly.

“I didn’t switch on any video games.” They were about to let me go.

“But I grew 20 centimetres taller the next season.” Because of the growth spurt, my knees hurt.

“But things got better after I got over it.” That’s what I did when Willem gave me the chance. I took charge of the group.

Even better, he went back to playing centre defence, which he had always thought was his best spot. When he was a teenager, he played every sport there was and did very well in all of them. He had always known, though, that he was a great football player.

He said, “I was the kind of boy who could do anything.” Tennis, basketball, badminton, and swimming were all things I was good at.

There was nothing I couldn’t do. Then I signed up for a sports trainer class at my high school to get ready to become a coach.Because of this, I had to play a lot of sports for a while.

Even though I enjoy all games, my favourite is basketball. I really enjoy basketball. It’s not something I think I could have done well.

“My goal has always been to play football.” Many times when we played at school, I was one of the best players in my group.

He does say, though, that his growing discomfort at Willem II and his sickness at Groningen made him start to question himself.

When asked what he would have done if everything had finished quickly, he just shrugged and said, “I might have gone back to school.”

“I can’t imagine what my life would have been like if I hadn’t chosen to play football.”

It would have been very strange. I’m thankful for what I have now. I love my life now because I can do what I love.

I also get paid to do what I love. In fact, it is a lovely thing to own.

“Maybe this event was meant to happen because everything else does.”

But that taught me a lot. I feel like I’ve changed a lot.

Van Dijk says he has no idea what he would have done if football didn’t exist.

He’s also a better one. Things are going well at work, and his girlfriend Rike Nooitgedagt is helping him get used to living in Glasgow.

He said, “I’m glad she came along; it’s important to have someone here to help you with everything.” “She works hard at her job and then takes some time off to unwind before going with me to Scotland.”

I thought she should quit her job as sales manager in Holland. She made a big choice there, and I respect it.

“She is here, which is very important, and I believe that is the main reason I feel so at home.”

At this point in time, Van Dijk has proven himself to be a world-class defender. In January of the previous year, he moved from Southampton to Liverpool for the most money of any player in football history. People have given Van Dijk awards like the PFA Player of the Year and the BBC’s Player of the Year for his great play. He has made a big difference on the Liverpool team, and he wants to help them win their first league title in 29 years.