Virgil van Dijk insists there is no disharmony in Liverpool's dressing room and does not believe outside criticism will affect anyone at Anfield. 

Liverpool have endured a difficult second season under Arne Slot, sitting sixth in the Premier League table, two points adrift of Manchester United in fourth.

Following the collapse of Liverpool's Premier League title defence, Slot's position at Liverpool has been called into question – particularly after former Reds midfielder Xabi Alonso was sacked by Real Madrid last month.

Star forward Mohamed Salah, meanwhile, was involved in a public bust-up with Slot in December after being benched for several games, though the Egyptian returned to the fold after clear-the-air talks with his head coach.

And despite the frustrations around the club, Van Dijk insists everyone remains united. 

He said: "I don't think there has been any question internally. I don't think there's any disharmony. 

"There are obviously challenges that happen, and everyone is dealing with certain situations in a different way."

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Asked whether Slot deserves more respect after overseeing Liverpool's 20th top-flight title win, Van Dijk replied: "Who gives him the disrespect? That's the question. Is the disrespect being given by people where we shouldn't value their disrespect?

"I can also think about players being disrespected, and who disrespects the players? Is that someone you value, is it a significant show of disrespect or someone where you can just let slide and focus on the task ahead to be successful as a Liverpool player? 

"That's the responsibility we speak about every three or four days."

Van Dijk acknowledged that outside criticism will always be part of football and advises his younger team-mates to shut out the noise as much as possible.

"If you're going to read all that stuff, one week you could be the hero and the next week the villain," he said.

"I spoke last week about how much worse and difficult it's getting every year. For the next generation, it will be a very big challenge.

"Every era has its own challenges, and that part – outside the game – will be a big challenge for the next generation, and it's already a challenge for this generation."