29 April 2023 , 21:30
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Virgil van Dijk insists he’s focusing solely on the job in hand for Liverpool rather than worrying it is Arsenal, not themselves, who are involved in this season's title battle with Manchester City.
For the last four years, no one has come as close to laying a glove on Pep Guardiola’s men as the gang from the red corner.
Twice in that time they have finished just a point and a place behind City in the Premier League.
And in 2019-20, of course, they dished out a hammer blow as they beat City to the crown by a whopping 18 points.
This season, however, has been one of acute frustration for everyone associated with Liverpool, with them well off the pace all season.
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But while Van Dijk knows a big reset is needed for everyone at the club in the summer, on the back of a challenging season that included the first mid-winter World Cup, he claims the battle for the European places is a challenge enough.
Asked whether there was a frustration that the big midweek title clash didn’t involve his side, Van Dijk said: “No, why? We had a big battle ourselves so I’m not thinking about what they are doing.
“Winning the game ahead of us, that’s the target.
“And especially with the season we have had and are having, we can’t think about the next games to come, just the game that’s ahead of us.
Van Dijk impressed in Liverpool's 2-1 win at West Ham on Wednesday (AFP via Getty Images)“On Wednesday, it was West Ham. We knew it was going to be tough but we won the game, we deserved to win the game and it was a good performance overall.
“We had to work for it, which was also to be expected as well.
“Now the game against Tottenham will be a big challenge.
“We are at home, we have to be positive and confident and give everything, then we will see what happens.
“Obviously, being in the Champions League is important, but at this point it’s something that is out of our hands a little bit and everyone realises that.
Arsenal have seen their title challenge fall flat (Arsenal FC via Getty Images)“But the season is not over yet, there are still so many points to get and all we have to do is win the game ahead of us.”
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Liverpool aren’t alone in not being their usual selves this season.
It wasn’t until February that champions elect City finally clicked into gear, today’s visitors Spurs haven’t played good football for lengthy spells and results have been dreadful in recent weeks.
Manchester United have been up and down, too, and Van Dijk, one of seven Liverpool players to go to the World Cup, is adamant the break for Qatar has affected a lot of players and clubs.
He added: “It definitely has impacted on it and it’s not a normal season, that’s obviously quite clear.
“But everyone had to deal with it and some clubs have dealt with it much better than others.”
Van Dijk knows the summer will be crucially important to ensuring Liverpool start next season much better than they started this one — a campaign in which they were effectively out of the title race very early on — and he’s not just talking about the pre-season tours to Germany and the Far East.
He said: “Having a holiday is very important after the season and maybe as important as pre-season in general.
Van Dijk is getting ready to go again for Liverpool next season (AP)“You completely switch off and to have your mind on something else and let your body recover and then go into pre-season will be a benefit as well.
“So we have to find the right balance in this case.
“We go to Germany first, there will be a lot of running, a lot of hard work and a lot of tactical sessions in order to be ready for a tough season ahead because a lot of teams around us will improve, too.”