Virgil van Dijk believes Liverpool must prove they are “one of the biggest teams in the world” and improve their faltering away form, beginning at Ajax this evening. Qualification for the Champions League knockout phase can be achieved with a game to spare should Liverpool avoid defeat in the Dutch capital.
That would represent an impressive turnaround from Jurgen Klopp’s team in Europe having lost their Group A opener 4-1 in Napoli. Yet away results have continued to hinder Liverpool’s momentum with defeat at Nottingham Forest on Saturday being their fourth loss in seven away matches across all competitions this term.
Van Dijk admits improvements must come in the Netherlands. “It is not something that we like [the away form],” he said. “It is something we want to improve as a group. We will try and show the intensity that we always want to show from tomorrow. We need that. Every game we play, whether it is away or at home, is always a difficult task and it is a different ask. From us as well.
“For example, the last away game at Forest we played against a very deep defending side and we tried to break them down and you have to be patient and do the right things. It makes every game different. We want to improve the situation, we want to improve the away results. It starts tomorrow. We want to show tomorrow that we are Liverpool, one of the biggest teams and clubs in the world.”
Ajax require victory to retain hope of qualifying and Van Dijk, the Netherlands’ captain, said Liverpool cannot afford to allow their hosts, who have lost their last three Champions League group games, to build any confidence on home soil.
“Ajax is a fantastic club, historically as well with the philosophy of how they want to play,” he said “They don’t have the best moment but I know how it can be here on a Champions League night when things go well for them. We have to be prepared for that and we have to match their intensity at least and then do even more.
“It will be interesting and something we should look forward [to]. We shouldn’t forget ourselves and who we are. We have to keep the confidence and try to be consistent.”
Ajax ground-staff have been working on the pitch at the Johan Cruijff ArenA after it was damaged during the Amsterdam Dance Event at the weekend, however concerns remain.
'Injuries have cost us consistency'
Klopp, meanwhile, claimed he has been preoccupied with other issues since Saturday to worry too much about Liverpool’s away struggles — namely injuries, with Thiago Alcantara still absent with the ear infection that forced his withdrawal against Forest. “It is not something that is on my mind at the moment,” the Liverpool manager said of the contrast between his team’s home and away record.
“I am not sitting here thinking about the away problem and that I have to say something special about it for tomorrow. I prepare the team for a very important football game. Sorry, but I am not prepared for this question in this moment. I have had other things to do in the last few days.”
Klopp went on to emphasise the significance of injury issues in Liverpool’s “difficult situation”. He said: “What you need to click is consistency in a line-up, and we cannot do that. Not at all. We have to sort problems. The situation doesn’t just get sorted overnight. Naby [Keita] and Ox [Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain] are not in the Champions League squad because everyone told me they would be out for longer. If they are back it is good but they are not back to play.
“I’m really looking forward to the game. It’s the Champions League, it’s Ajax — big names, big games. It’s all good. Our squad is not too small, it’s just that we have too many injuries. But we have enough players here and that is good news for the people who are with us.”