Virgil van Dijk: the lowdown from a Celtic fan

Celtic fans must be starting to look at Southampton with scorn, much like Saints with Premier League rivals Liverpool. <!-- ######## START FLOATED VIDEO SNIPPET ######## -->

<div class="floated-video"><iframe allowtransparency="true" style="border:none; overflow:hidden; height:290px;" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" src="//www.facebook.com/plugins/likebox.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fsaintmarysmusings&amp;width&amp;height=290&amp;colorscheme=light&amp;show_faces=true&amp;header=true&amp;stream=false&amp;show_border=true"></iframe></div>

<!-- ######## END SNIPPET ######## -->

In just three seasons, Southampton have bought three of Celtic's key players, the others being Victor Wanyama and Fraser Forster.

However, Celtic fans are well aware of their position and the limitations present when competing within Scottish football.

Here is the lowdown on Saints' new towering centre-half Virgil van Dijk from Celtic fan and podcaster Stephen Wray.

St. Mary's Musings: What was the immediate reaction from Celtic fans as van Dijk made his move to Southampton?

Stephen Wray: Not surprised, been on the cards since last summer.

SMM: What sort of player are Saints signing here?

SW: Tall, Strong, Quick, 2 good feet, very skilful, can crack a 25yard FK into the top corner no problem, not as good in the air when up against a big tall strong striker, good passer, likes to bomb forward at least once a game like Sol Campbell used to. Not the complete defender yet but could get there easily enough.

SMM: Is the fee, rumoured to be around £12m, appropriate for this signing?

SW: Probably undervalued mainly because of the status of the SPFL Premiership, £15m would have been more appropriate but we are where we are.

SMM: Saints have signed a number of Celtic players over the years. Is this a worrying/annoying trend for Celtic fans? Will Celtic miss van Dijk now he has moved?

SW: Celtic always miss their best players, fans feel like the owners are downsizing, a lot of anger after this window.

We're starting to get used to it. IMO Celtic are bigger in status than most English teams but being stuck in the SPFL with our lack of TV money makes us easy pickings for most EPL teams.

SMM: Do you or other Celtic fans support a move from the SPFL to the English football system?

SW: Some do (especially me). Some would like Scotland and other 2nd/3rd tier leagues to create a super league under UEFA to challenge the big 5 leagues.(I would also like).

Celtic fans just want to see the club compete on a level playing field, right now it's not. Football in Europe only looks after the largest countries.

SMM: Why is there such anger after this transfer window?

SW: We failed to invest in the squad enough to get us into the UCL, the board failed again and then sold our best defender