Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk last season's break in Dubai helped him settle after his move from Southampton.

Van Dijk had scored on debut against Everton before the squad flew out to the UAE.

He told Voetbal International: "After that match [against Everton] we went with the team for a short training camp to Dubai.

"That was perfect, that way I got to know everybody in no time and it turned out that it clicked right away. It has always remained that way.

"You know, I've only been playing Liverpool for 10 months, but I feel like I've been around here for a long time.

"I can't do it, you have to feel it [at Anfield], experience it, taste it. It's as good as gold for me, though.

"Of course I knew Liverpool, who doesn't in the world. You form a picture of such a club from a distance and then you realise that it must be very big.

“If you then, like me, start playing with Southampton, it gets a bit deeper. That stadium, those people, the You'll Never Walk Alone, all great.

"But then you will be completely surprised and overwhelmed once you sign a contract here. And after that it will take a while before you really get it."