Joshua Zirkzee of Manchester United and Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk looked to have an unpleasant exchange while the two players were on international duty.

On Saturday, the Netherlands defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina 5-2 to start their Nations League campaign.

Fans noticed what appeared to be a chilly moment in the tunnel prior to both teams entering the pitch, as Van Dijk captained his team. 

The centre defender avoided Zirkzee and was spotted shaking hands with every member of his squad.

There was barely a sidelong glance between the two men, and some have speculated that this was due to their rivalry inside their clubs. 

“Van Dijk is not interested in learning about Zirkzee,” a fan stated on X, the former Twitter. 

It appears that Van Dijk is not giving Zirkzee much thought right now! Another noted that there might be a fascinating competition developing.

Some reversed the course of events and placed the onus of accountability on the forward. Someone said, “Zirkzee airing Van Dijk.” “The way things ought to be.” 

“I believe Zirkzee is still fighting Van Dijk for beating Man United at Old Trafford,” one person commented.

Six days prior to the international encounter, Liverpool had destroyed United 3-0 at Old Trafford in the Premier League. 

Van Dijk leads Liverpool, and Zirkzee moved from Bologna to United in the summer after spending £36.5 million.

Even though both players had a strong start to the crucial match at Old Trafford, only Van Dijk would be satisfied with his performance after shutting out Erik ten Hag’s team.

Any indications of severe conflict between them were, however, quickly disregarded when Zirkzee scored the first goal for Oranje versus Bosnia and Herzegovina and they were spotted cuddling. 

Ronald Koeman’s team won handily, and both Cody Gakpo of Liverpool and Wout Weghorst, a former Manchester United loanee, scored goals.