Virgil van Dijk admits Liverpool needs a “miracle” against Real Madrid in Spain, but he does not believe they played poorly in the first leg.
Jurgen Klopp’s team raced to a 2-0 lead against Real Madrid in the Champions League round of 16 match, with Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah scoring in the first 14 minutes.
Their euphoria, however, was short-lived, as Vinicius Jr. scored twice before halftime to equalize the scores and shift the tide in Real’s favor.Eder Militao then put the visitors ahead early in the second half, before Karim Benzema netted a brace, leaving Liverpool requiring a four-goal swing in the return leg to advance.
Van Dijk felt the Reds produced a great overall effort that was not fully reflected by the final scoreline despite failing to organize his backline throughout the 90 minutes.
“We are 5-2 down and have an almost impossible task to turn it around in Madrid,” he told CBS Sports after the match. “But football is full of miracles and let’s hope we can pull off a miracle.
“We should have been more composed and calm in possession but, yeah, there was nothing wrong (with the performance) in my opinion. We didn’t give many chances away but in the end with the quality they have, they punish you, properly.”
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Liverpool’s only hope of a trophy this season is the Champions League, with Jurgen Klopp’s side now out of the FA Cup and Carabao Cup.
They are also well off the pace in the race for a top-four Premier League finish, and concerns are being raised about Klopp’s future at Anfield.
The Reds’ attention will now return to the Premier League, where they will face Crystal Palace on Saturday.
The second leg versus Real Madrid is scheduled for March 15 at the Bernabeu.
