‘We will win title for VVD’
ROBERTO FIRMINO says Liverpool will dedicate the trophy to injured team-mate Virgil van Dijk if they can retain the Premier League title. Key defender Van Dijk, 29, is recovering from a serious knee injury suffered at Everton in October, with fears he could miss the rest of the season despite undergoing a successful operation. He gave fans hope recently with video footage of him beginning light recovery rehabilitation work at the club’s new AXA Training Centre.
But Liverpool go to Fulham today knowing the best way they can help the big centre-half is by carrying on winning games without him.
Striker Firmino said: “The injury was a real shame because he is not only an important player for us on the field but also in the dressing room.
“We all miss him and the squad wants to dedicate the successes we achieve this campaign to him.”
The Reds have given themselves a chance of doing that after coping with a terrible injury list to stay in contention at the top of the table and reach the knockout stages of the Champions League.
Firmino added: “I think we have shown that we have a great squad of players so our target remains the same. Our challenge is to be champions again so we have to be ready for a long campaign.”
That doesn’t mean that Liverpool do not feel the pain of being without Van Dijk – or that they think winning the title without him will be easy. But victory at Craven Cottage could take them back to the top of the table with a fighting chance of staying ahead of an ever more competitive chasing pack. Firmino, also 29, said: “What we are experiencing now, and what we experienced at the end of last season, is different to any situation we have been through before. “The healthiest team, in all ways, and the most consistent side could well be the one with the best chance of being champion.
“But we will do everything we can to make sure it is us.
“Winning the Premier League twice in a row would be fulfilling a dream since I came here.
“First it was the Champions League, then the Premier League and now I want another one. Everybody is the same.”