Liverpool skipper Virgil van Dijk asks team to learn from 'difficult' past experiences to help them win trophies this season
Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk has asked his teammates to learn from their past disappointments and experiences to win trophies this season. The Reds have enjoyed a remarkable season so far and are in strong contention to win the Premier League and UEFA Champions League, among other trophies.
Last season, they were strong contenders in a similar fashion, with four trophies nearing their grasp. However, they crashed out of the FA Cup and the UEFA Europa League in the quarter-finals. They were also well in the Premier League title race last season, before faltering towards the end and coming third, behind Arsenal and eventual winners Manchester City.
Now, they are firmly seated in pole position in both the Premier League and the Champions League. They have lost just twice this season, once in the Carabao Cup, and once in the domestic league. However, Van Dijk does not want them to falter like they did last season. He said (via ESPN):
"I think you have to learn from difficult moments and moments that don't go your way. Most of the guys in the dressing room now have experienced last year and that should make you better, make you aware of how to deal with certain situations and circumstances, and you should be better equipped. Let's see."
The captain continued:
"At the moment I am looking at our team and we are very calm, we are working our socks off each and every day, each and every game, and we need everyone fit, healthy and in form and that's the aim.
"Going into every game with the mentality it is game-by-game. That's how it's always been the case. It's a nice ride, I think you should enjoy it as well and I will definitely do it."
Liverpool are coming off a 2-1 win over Lille, which leaves them at the top of the UEFA Champions League table with seven straight wins.
Arne Slot speaks about players after Liverpool triumph over Lille
Arne Slot had words of praise for his players after they triumphed over Lille. Liverpool invited the French side to Anfield yesterday (January 21) for their Champions League league stage clash and finished with a 2-1 win.
After the game, Slot shared his delight about his players' performances in the continental competition this season, where they have kept five clean sheets. He told the press (via the club website):
"Where I put everything down to first of all [is] the quality of the players, and second of all these quality players have an incredible work-rate. If you combine those two things, it's very difficult to score against the team...
"The nice thing for me is that we keep clean sheets not by defending a lot, we keep clean sheets by attacking a lot."
Mohamed Salah opened the scoring for Liverpool (34'). Aissa Mandi was sent off in the 59th minute for Lille before Jonathan David equalized (62'). The stalemate did not last very long, with Harvey Elliott finding the winner to raise the roof at Anfield (67').