Reigning World Champion Max Verstappen has revealed that he’s a supporter of English football team Manchester United, but despite this he still speaks to some Liverpool players.
Verstappen is currently cruising to a third consecutive Drivers’ Championship, thanks to a dominant display in the first half of 2023.
The Red Bull driver has been imperious, something which can also be said for Manchester Utd’s local rivals, Manchester City.
Manchester City claimed their third consecutive league title in May, whilst Manchester Utd had to settle for third.
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Verstappen is certainly keen for his favourite team’s rivals to stop winning; however, he jokingly recognises that many people are saying the same about Red Bull.
Red Bull have won every race so far this season, whilst they’ve also won 19 of the last 20.
Interestingly, the 25-year-old also revealed that he talks to more of Manchester Utd’s rivals, with him naming fellow Dutchman Virgil van Dijk.
Van Dijk plays for arguably Manchester Utd’s greatest rivals, Liverpool.
Despite this, Verstappen speaks to Van Dijk and other Liverpool players, something he openly revealed.
“I’m a United fan,” Verstappen told TalkSPORT whilst laughing.
“It’s not like I’m a die-hard United fan. I mean, I’m talking to Virgil [van Dijk] and Liverpool players, stuff like that.
“For me, I enjoy it when I see a great football match and I think the Premier League is the best league out there. It has a lot of great players.
“I think Man City are winning a little bit too much, but then again, I can say the same thing about us [Red Bull]. The other teams need to get better.”
Verstappen also discussed his nation’s chances ahead of next year’s European Championship, with ex-football player and former Barcelona boss Ronald Koeman having returned to manage the side.
Verstappen recognises that his nation is currently “not the best national team”; however, he’s hopeful that it’ll be a positive tournament for the team with “Koeman back in charge”.
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“It’s a tough one, I think. At the moment we’re still not where we want to be. With Koeman back in charge I hope it’s going to go down well,” Verstappen said.
“I’m a big fan but I’m also realistic. At the moment we’re not the best national team out there, but you don’t need to be the best team out there if you play well together, you don’t need one superstar, it’s all about getting your tactics right.
“Let’s see, they just need to play a bit more together instead of swapping players in and out.”