Account
Virgil van Dijk: Liverpool 'Unlucky' to Be Against Manchester City in Title Race
March 8, 2019
Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk believes his side are "unlucky" to be competing for the Premier League title against such a strong Manchester City team.
The Reds are 10 points better off than they were at this stage last season, but they nevertheless find themselves one point behind City in the title race with nine matches remaining.
Van Dijk told BBC Sport (h/t AS) ahead of his side's game against Burnley at Anfield on Sunday:
"That's the unlucky bit for us—they've been fantastic throughout the whole season. We've been doing fantastic as well.
"I think it's something good for people that love football to see. We'll give everything we have, and they probably will, too.
"The Premier League would be something special, also this year because the race is so tight. I want to achieve everything that's possible in football and get everything out of myself and not have any regrets when I retire.
"My dream is to win trophies with Liverpool because Liverpool deserve trophies. We're close, we're still in the race and we're going to fight until the end."
Liverpool's frustration is understandable, as they've lost just once in the Premier League all season.
Not only has that not been enough to earn a comfortable lead in the title race by this stage; it has not even been enough to secure first place.
Football writer Sam McGuire echoed Van Dijk's sentiment:
The Reds have stumbled on several occasions in recent weeks, drawing four of their last six league games.
By contrast, since City surprisingly slipped to three defeats in December, they've won nine of their last 10, scoring 25 goals in the process.
In December, Goal's Sam Lee suggested that even an unbeaten season for Liverpool might not be enough to beat Pep Guardiola's side to the title:
Both teams have since suffered defeats, but they're each still on course to surpass 90 points—the tally Arsenal collected in their Invincibles campaign—this season.
Napoli fans can no doubt relate to Liverpool's situation. They amassed 91 points in Serie A last season but still finished second behind the relentless Juventus.
There's still a long way to go for the Reds yet, though, and if they can put their recent form behind them and get back to winning consistently, they've got a good chance of lifting the trophy.