Programme notesVirgil van Dijk: Why Sunday's game at Anfield has extra significance
Read Virgil van Dijk's column in the matchday programme for Sunday's Premier League encounter with Wolverhampton Wanderers at Anfield.
The Liverpool captain writes: "Every single matchday at Anfield is special, but Sunday's has a little extra significance attached to it.
"The LFC Foundation celebrates its Community Day, an event held to mark the incredible work that they do. I have been fortunate enough to see this work up close, and I could not be more impressed.
"Everyone knows we are a football club first and foremost, but it is so important that we can be so much more than this, especially in a city like Liverpool where community and standing together are part of the fabric.
"I would encourage anyone reading this to learn more about the work the LFC Foundation does and get involved however you can and help them to support even more people in our communities.
"Just recently I met Mark Henderson from the LFC Foundation, who has been named the club's Premier League Community Captain for this season, and hearing his story and the dedication he has to helping people is incredible. It will be a privilege to be able to present him with his award ahead of the game.
"On the pitch, our aim on Sunday is simple. We want to win every game we play, whether at Anfield or elsewhere, and we hope we can show the best of ourselves against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
"It has been a very challenging period for us all, with a lot of games in different competitions coming thick and fast.
"Everyone was disappointed with the manner in which we went out of the FA Cup at Plymouth Argyle last weekend. It was a competition we wanted to compete for, and so to be eliminated in the fourth round, and after a performance which fell short of the levels we expect, hurt everybody.
"We were also disappointed, of course, with the way the Everton game finished on Wednesday.
"To be so close to a big win, having worked so hard to put ourselves in that position, and then to concede such a late equaliser is obviously very frustrating and I think you could see that at full-time. We wanted the three points, so it was a tough one to take at the time.
"But now the dust has settled, we also need to look at the bigger picture. We are in a very good position and there are a lot of games to play in the upcoming weeks.
"There is no need for us to dwell too much on one result, we just have to keep going, keep showing the things we have shown so far this season and keep moving forwards. And so to Sunday, and another tough test against a team with plenty to play for.
"Forget the league table, this is a Wolves team that will be highly motivated and has the quality to cause problems for any opponent. We had to work extremely hard to get three points when we visited Molineux earlier in the season, and we expect that to be the case again.
"We will need to be fully switched on, ready to fight and battle, and prepared to stay calm throughout in order to get the result we want.
"We consider ourselves very fortunate to be able to call upon your wonderful support, and we will again draw strength from that, hopefully ensuring you all have plenty to shout about come the final whistle."
- Get your copy of the programme at Anfield on Sunday or order online here
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