Southampton manager Mauricio Pellegrino has refused to rule out the possibility of Virgil van Dijk leaving the club during the January transfer window.

Van Dijk was left out of Southampton's starting lineup for this afternoon's 1-0 defeat at the hands of Premier League champions Chelsea, one of six changes made to the side from the midweek loss at home to Leicester City.

The Dutchman's omission sparked rumours that he could be set for an exit next month, having tried to engineer a move away during the summer amid strong interest from Liverpool.

The Reds are one of a number of clubs understood to still be monitoring Van Dijk and, while Pellegrino is hopeful of keeping his "best player" at the club, he admitted that the situation is ultimately out of his control.

"Virgil is an important player. I can't control the market. I'm not the owner of the player. I can have my opinion and this I have give to the technical director, to the chairman, my opinion," he told reporters.

"After the board can decide altogether which is the best for the team. I can't control this. I will recommend to try to keep our best player here in the club. The club was clear in the beginning and I have the same opinion."

Van Dijk, who has also been linked with Manchester City and Chelsea, had started Southampton's previous 11 matches before today.