Virgil Van Dijk Talks 'Best Player in the World' Lionel Messi Before UCL Clash

Virgil van Dijk acknowledged Liverpool will face "the best player in the world" on Wednesday in Lionel Messi when they meet Barcelona at the Camp Nou in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League semi-final.

However, the Dutch centre-back said the five-time Ballon d'Or winner will not be Liverpool's sole focus because of Barcelona's wealth of talent, per AS:

"I think [Messi] is the best player in the world. But you see how we play and how we defend. We don't defend one v one, we defend all together and we attack all together as well so we will see. We will be ready.

"The situation is that we are in the semi-final against Barcelona and we are going to face the best player in the world but it is not only him, the whole team has a lot of quality. We will prepare well and we have also a very good team so we can compete there. It is not like we are going there for a holiday."

Messi, 31, is the top scorer in the Champions League this season after netting 10 goals in eight appearances. 

If any defence has the quality to keep him quiet, though, it is Liverpool's:

Under the leadership of Van Dijk, the Reds have conceded just 20 goals in 36 Premier League games this term and nine in 10 in the Champions League.

Jurgen Klopp's side have also only conceded more than one goal in a match just once in their last 17 fixtures in all competitions.

If they can restrict Barcelona to just one on Wednesday, Liverpool will come away feeling positive about making the final after the second leg at Anfield six days later. 

However, the key for the Merseyside outfit could be how many goals they score.

The Blaugrana have been the stingiest side so far in the Champions League this season, conceding just six goals at an average of 0.6 per game.

Liverpool boast a blistering attacking unit, and Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah both netted doubles against Huddersfield Town on Friday:

But Barca have not lost at home in the Champions League since May 2013.

Despite the abundance of attacking talent in both Barcelona and Liverpool's squads, the tie could be a low-scoring affair that is decided by the performances of Van Dijk and Messi.