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Southampton were adamant.

“We said: ‘Okay, this is it. We are not a selling club’.

“The players have contracts. We don’t sell any more players and we will try to keep to that.”

Those were the words of then Saints boss Ronald Koeman in July 2014. Within a fortnight Dejan Lovren had sealed a £20million move from St Mary’s to Liverpool.

It’s the reason why many Kopites will take Southampton’s latest declaration - delivered by executive director Les Reed - that Virgil van Dijk is not for sale with a pinch of salt.

After all we know that Liverpool would be willing to shatter their transfer record and shell out £60million to make Van Dijk the most expensive defender in history. And it’s no secret that the Dutchman has his heart set on a move to Anfield.

Plenty of bookies still believe the deal will happen. You’ll be lucky to get better than evens if you want to place a bet on Van Dijk being a Liverpool player when the window shuts in early September.

However, the reality is that the chances of the Reds landing Jurgen Klopp’s top defensive target currently look remote.

Ask any of the Anfield hierarchy and they will tell you that Liverpool’s interest in Van Dijk ended when they issued a public apology to Saints earlier this month after being accused of making an illegal approach.

Understandably, the Reds won’t be drawn on the prospect of re-igniting their pursuit. The subject is off limits but Klopp’s admiration for the 25-year-old centre-back hasn’t suddenly diminished.

The Premier League may have ruled that the club will face no punishment over the alleged ‘tapping up’ but the Reds know they have to tread very carefully. They don’t want to provoke more outrage on the south coast.

The episode was a PR nightmare for Liverpool. It became widely known that Van Dijk, who was also being chased by Chelsea, had told Klopp he wanted to sign for the Reds at a time when the club hadn’t even opened negotiations with Southampton.

However, in truth, it’s highly likely that even if the Reds had handled things very differently they still would have found themselves in exactly the same position are they are now.

Saints had already told Van Dijk, who has five years remaining on his contract, that he wasn’t for sale. They had also decided that he certainly wouldn’t be going to Liverpool.

Unsurprisingly, Liverpool’s annual cherry-picking of Southampton’s top talent had reached a point where they had decided enough was enough.

Over the past three years the Reds have bought Rickie Lambert, Adam Lallana, Lovren, Nathaniel Clyne and Sadio Mane from Saints for a total of £92million. Southampton were adamant that Van Dijk wouldn’t join that list, regardless of the offer on the table. Claims that Van Dijk had met Klopp in Blackpool merely strengthened that resolve.

So what happens now?

Much depends on how Van Dijk responds when he reports back to pre-season with Saints and starts working with new boss Mauricio Pellegrino. Will he accept that he’s staying put for another year?

(Image: (Photo by Gonzalo Arroyo Moreno/Getty Images))

The reason the situation changed so quickly with Lovren three years ago was that the Croatian agitated for a move. After an initial bid from Liverpool was rejected, he publicly criticised Saints and gave an interview in which he questioned their ambition and said: “My head is already at Liverpool.”

Lovren got the transfer he wanted but has felt the wrath of Saints fans each time he’s been back to St Mary’s. Would Van Dijk be willing to force the issue in a similar fashion?

The only way in which Liverpool could realistically re-enter the race for Van Dijk is if it becomes clear later in the window that Southampton’s stance has changed and they are listening to offers for the defender who cost £13million from Celtic two years ago.

If Saints are negotiating with Chelsea then Liverpool will surely get involved. If Van Dijk remains adamant that Anfield is his destination of choice then Southampton may have to consider Liverpool’s money as being as good as anyone else’s.

There is still a glimmer of hope but that’s all it is. The question is how long do Liverpool cling on to it before accepting defeat and pursuing an alternative option?