Virgil van Dijk says the return of Champions League nights to Anfield is an “exciting prospect” as Liverpool get set to face Atletico Madrid tonight.
The Reds step back into European action for the 2025/26 campaign with a clash under the lights against Diego Simeone’s side. Van Dijk, writing in the matchday programme, underlined how much this competition means to the club and its supporters.
“This competition means an awful lot to everyone associated with the club,” he said. “You don’t need me to tell you about the wonderful memories Liverpool has created in the Champions League down the years, but the aim now is to create a few more in the coming weeks and months. That is an exciting prospect, for sure.
“Of course, we know it won’t be easy. You only need to look at tonight’s opponents to realise that. Atletico have been one of the best and most consistent teams around for many years now. They have a top manager, top players, and we need to be ready to work extremely hard if we are to start with a positive result.”
He added: “We will also need you guys at your best. Your support has helped make a difference many times previously in big Champions League games, and I hope that is the case again this evening. Let’s make Anfield the place no team in Europe will want to visit.”
Reflecting on Liverpool’s perfect start in the Premier League, the No.4 pointed to one key quality that has defined their season so far.
“If there has been a word to sum up our season so far, then in my opinion it would be ‘mentality’. We have won all four of our Premier League games, but in each one we have had to show lots of character, lots of patience and lots of belief in order to get the points.
“For the fourth game in a row, we left it late before grabbing the win. For the fourth game in a row, we showed the kind of mentality we are going to need if we are to enjoy another successful season.
“You can’t always play your best football, but what you can always do is you can keep trying, keep pushing, keep working hard and keep motivating one another. I thought our body language at Turf Moor was exceptional. We never got frustrated, never lost our belief and in the end, we got a deserved victory and another big three points.
“Those kinds of wins tell you something about this team. Obviously, no-one wants to find a way only in the last 10 minutes, but it’s about repeating the right patterns, keeping your focus and finding a way. This team has done that extremely well so far this season, and that should not be underestimated.”
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