Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk defended by Jaap Stam after criticism from Marco van Basten – but Manchester United legend admits Netherlands have been underwhelming at World Cup

Netherlands captain Virgil van Dijk has been backed by legendary Dutch defender Jaap Stam after criticism in his homeland during the World Cup.

Holland hero Marco van Basten recently slammed Van Dijk for his performance in the 1-1 draw with Ecuador, forcing the Liverpool defender to come out and defend himself.

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“He doesn’t take the lead," Van Basten said. "He takes care of nothing in the team. He makes a sound, but he doesn’t say anything. This is what he does.”

The Oranje sailed through Group A regardless, thanks to victories over Senegal and Qatar, setting up a last-16 clash with USA on Saturday.

Former Manchester United centre-back Stam, who won 67 caps for the Netherlands, believes criticism of Van Dijk has been unfair.

“Every former manager has their opinion of the players. I saw the game and the comments Van Basten made about Van Dijk afterwards," Stam told talkSPORT via .

“He wanted Virgil to be more of an influence on the pitch, on the ball and as a leader, taking more initiative.

“You need to look at the game, the opposition and how the game is set up. Virgil, as the centre of the three, it is not always easy for him to step up and dribble because the spaces are very small.

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“But Van Basten is expecting Van Dijk to step up and take initiative, rather than just playing the ball to the left or the right.

“As a centre-back, that is the only thing you can do. You can’t do anything more. The ones to your left and right, they are the ones with time and space because they’re not under pressure.

“So I’m not always agreeing with Van Basten’s comments. But you can understand why people expect a lot from him and you want him to be a big influence, especially when the team is not paying well.

“You need to do it by being very vocal and getting players in better positions, so in the end you can play better football. Maybe he can do that a little bit better.

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“But that’s the difficulty about being on the outside. You don’t know what the game plan is from the manager.”

Nevertheless, Stam admits Netherlands have underwhelmed with their football in Qatar.

Louis van Gaal's side topped a favourable group, but it has not been pretty.

Stam added: “To be honest, with how they’ve been playing, they haven’t played very good football. They’ve won their games but not by being dominant in a way we would’ve liked to see.

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“In terms of being fluid and playing combination football, they haven’t done that. That’s been a bit of a disappointment.

“But I know in these tournaments, it’s about results, getting to the next stage and hopefully playing more quality football. That’s what happens when you face better teams.

“We expected a little bit more quality football. But I’ve been in these tournaments, when you take the last game against Qatar, when you get 2-0 up, players don’t spend too much energy and that’s how it goes.”