Programme notesVirgil van Dijk explains why Liverpool have 'to give even more' during run-in

With the Carabao Cup already lifted, the Reds remain in the hunt for more honours in 2023-24 in the form of the Premier League and Europa League.

Van Dijk and his teammates return from the international break this afternoon when Brighton & Hove Albion visit Anfield in the league, the beginning of a potentially exciting sprint to May's finishing line.

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In the matchday programme, the captain writes: "We are in a good position and it makes sense to recognise that. It is a position that we have put ourselves in through blood, sweat and tears and there is no reason to expect the required formula to change now.

"If anything, we will have to give even more because that is just the way it is when the prizes come into view. There will be no let-up from any of the other teams, so there can't be any from us. The reality is that all teams are playing for something.

"In the Europa League, all of the quarter-finalists will be looking to win the competition. In the Premier League, everyone wants to finish as high as they possibly can – whether that means staying in the division, securing a European place, qualifying for the Champions League or winning the title.

"No matter what your status is now, you have an ambition that you want to fulfil. Our basic target is to win as many games as we possibly can and see where it takes us.

"I know by now our fans will be excited about what might be possible and rightly so, but, as I said at the start, for us it is all about focus and that means taking each game as it comes, not looking too far ahead and not getting caught up in the ups and downs that can, and almost certainly will, happen.

"Of course, we are coming into today's fixture against Brighton on the back of a defeat, so we need to get that out of our system.

"Losing to a rival is never a nice experience, particularly in a knockout competition, and we all know that we only had ourselves to blame for being beaten by Manchester United.

"What disappointed us most was we did not live up to the standards that we have set for ourselves this season in that fixture.

"We put ourselves in a position where we definitely could and should have done this, but ultimately we fell short and this is why the responsibility lies with us.

"I'm not one to look too much for positives in defeat – the big positive is always to avoid losing altogether – but if we use the information from that game going forward and learn from what happened, it certainly won't do us any harm.

"Obviously a lot of the players have been away on international duty and there has been a two-week gap since we last played for Liverpool but, if anything, the break between games has only heightened our desire to respond in the right way.

"We have not had too many setbacks this season, but when we have had them we have tended to bounce back, so the ambition now is to do the same thing."

• Get your copy of the matchday programme at Anfield today or order online here