Liverpool exited the Champions League at the last-16 stage after a penalty shootout defeat against Paris Saint-Germain, and Virgil van Dijk has now sent a message to his teammates
Liverpool titan Virgil van Dijk has urged Darwin Nunez and the rest of the squad to keep their heads high after a disappointing exit from the Champions League.
Despite Nunez and Curtis Jones being thwarted in their penalty efforts by PSG’s Gianluigi Donnarumma, Van Dijk swiftly shifted focus to Liverpool’s next shot at silverware. With the chance to win Arne Slot’s first trophy as boss in the Carabao Cup final against Newcastle United, Van Dijk hopes to turn the week around with a triumphant day out at Wembley.
The Reds’ skipper, seeking to galvanise his team following their Tuesday night heartache, said: “It’s part of football. I said to the guys ‘you can be disappointed because we are out of the competition, but chin up’. Now we get ready for the next challenge at the weekend which is a beautiful one.”
Despite feeling buoyed by Liverpool’s solid display against PSG, Van Dijk acknowledged the hefty challenge they faced: “I think we were pretty good today as well, and you want to go as far as possible, but we knew when we drew PSG it was going to be very difficult. We saw in Paris when we struggled but we won, and today we saw a very good Liverpool side but we’re out of the competition.
“Today from the first second and then extra time, when fatigue kicks in for both sides, it becomes more open but especially regular time, we showed a very good game. We can speak about the game for ages but we’re out of the competition, that is the reality.”
PSG boss Luis Enrique was impressed with the performance of Liverpool, but reserved praise for his goalkeeper Donnarumma.
Enrique said: “Both of the teams deserve to go to the next phase. They play better than us here, but I think my team at Anfield, in a special stadium showed great personality and character.
“We tried to play our best, but it was difficult as they’re so intense. Both teams deserve to qualify.
“The character and personality, even when we shoot at the penalty shootout they showed great character. I think it shows clearly the team we are.
“When the draw told us about the match against Liverpool and PSG. Both managers thought the same – one of the best matches you can watch in Europe. I think both teams were great.
“It is not about consistency you have to be great in specific moments. We suffered a lot in Paris, but football is in that way. Unfair at times. Today we were lucky, they hit the post a few times. “Gigi [Gianluigi Donnarumma] was like Alisson in the first match. We are happy and confident to go to the next phase.”