Southampton rule out sale of Chelsea and Liverpool target Virgil van Dijk

Southampton chairman Ralph Krueger is adamant that Virgil van Dijk is "not for sale in this window" as keeping the defender is "the statement we need to make" at this juncture.

The future of the 26-year-old has been one of the summer window's longest saga, with early interest from the Anfield outfit being dropped after Southampton in June asked the Premier League to investigate an alleged illegal approach.

Standard Sport understands Chelsea are on good terms with Southampton, which they feel puts them in a strong position for any negotiation over Van Dijk or Cedric Soares.

The club captain last week took matters into his own hands by handing in a transfer request and has been training away from the main group as he attempts to force an exit, but chairman Krueger insists the captain will not be sold with the club needing to make a statement.

"Virgil is not for sale in this window and it's not personal," the chairman said, just days after the Gao family bought an 80 per cent stake in the club. "It's not about him, it's about an overall much, much, much bigger picture - a change of course for Southampton.

"The first summer I was here five players went out and six went in, not counting academy. Second summer three went out, seven came in, and third summer five went out, five came in. Now it is one out and two in, and this is who we want to become.

"We want to mature, we want to be a team that can profit from synergies that create a much more attractive football and a better product for the fans, and gives us a chance to get back into Europe.

"That's one player in this whole equation of 25 and it is the visible one, but for us it's the principle and it's the path and it's the statement we need to make to get to a new space as a club.

The players on Chelsea’s transfer shortlist

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"We are very, very adamant about carrying this through. The new partnership has completely and wholly backed our strategy and plan and on September 1 people will see how serious we were and are."

It is a big statement from a club synonymous with seeing their best players leave on annual basis.

None of Southampton's previous stars have gone as far as to make a public transfer request, yet Krueger believes Van Dijk can be integrated into the group - and accepted, if not forgiven, by supporters.

"Well, first of all, they have experienced it here before on multiple occasions and it hasn't been a problem," the former head coach of the National Hockey League's Edmonton Oilers said.

"I can go back to Morgan Schneiderlin in our first summer and I could list others, but let's not do that.

"We've had other examples of that where it was no problem, so I don't see that as a problem."

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