Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk believes the history with arch-rivals Manchester United means Sunday’s FA Cup quarter-final meeting carries additional expectations. (More Football News)
A week after playing out a Premier League classic in a top-of-the-table 1-1 draw at home to Manchester City, Jurgen Klo✅pp’s side head to Old Trafford on the next leg of their quest for an unprecedented quadruple
Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk believes the history with arch-rivals Manchester United means Sunday’s FA Cup quarter-final meeting carries additional expectations. (More Football News)
A week after playing out a Premier League classic in a top-of-the-table 1-1 draw at home to Manchester City, Jurgen Klopp’s side head to Old Trafford on the next leg of their quest ꦯfor an unprecedented quadruple.
United are starting to gain some form – eight wins and just two defeats in the last 11 games – after an indifferent first half of the season andღ that makes the weekend’s quarter-final clash more intriguing.
Asked about the rivalry, Van Dijk said: “Inte꧙nse. Not only the actual game but the whole build-up is a ga𝔉me on its own but I like to be involved in these type of games.
“We always have a difficult g꧟ames against🦄 them and I expect a difficult one on Sunday as well.
“They are f൩inding ways to win but I focus on what we have to do against them. It’s always difficult, it’s always intense.
“The history of the games with the two biggest clubs in England brings extra expectation and pressure but why not just go ou🍸t there and enjoy it, play our game and hopefully ✃go to the next round?”
Liverpool head into the game on the back of a 6-1 Europa League thrashing of Sparta Prague – a tie which finished 11-2 on aggregate – with their forwarಌds all in form.
Mohamed Salah became the first player in the club’s history to score 20 goals in seven successive seasons, Darwin Nunez has 17 and six in as many games, and Cody Gakpo’s two against the Czech champions took him to 13 for the c𝕴ampaign. Luis Diaz, an unused substitute, ✨is expected to start on Sunday looking to add to his tally of 13, six of which have come in the last 14 games.
United are the only team in the last 55 matches to prevent Liverpool from scoring after an ultra-defensive display in a goalless dra💝w at Anfield in December.
Van Dijk is not sure they can adopt the same approach on Sunday, especially with 9,000 visiting fans inside Old Trಌafford.
“♏I think the game here was, I wouldn’t say one-sided but we had a lot of the ball,” he added.
“They created a couple of dangero♏us moments on the break and we have to be aware of that but if they would do it exactly the same when they play at home, I have no idea.
“We have to focus on our game and make it as difficult as possible, press them as high as we want and play our football and hopefully we can get through.”