Van Dijk calls for 'perspective' after Liverpool overcome Real Madrid

Virgil van Dijk suggested there was a need for "perspective" as Liverpool dealt with their dismal run of form.

Liverpool made it three wins in the space of four games as they beat LaLiga leaders Real Madrid 1-0 at Anfield on Tuesday.

The Reds have won three of their four Champions League matches this season and sit sixth in the 36-team standings, with Alexis Mac Allister's header just after the hour making the difference.

Defensively, Liverpool were excellent, limiting a lacklustre Madrid side to just two attempts on target, while Thibaut Courtois kept the score down at the other end.

And Van Dijk insisted calm heads were needed for Liverpool to get out of their rut, with Arne Slot's team having lost six games out of seven prior to beating Aston Villa last Saturday.

"A lot of energy, a lot of hard work. They have a lot of quality, we all know their strengths, how they can punish you. We performed our gameplan perfectly," Van Dijk told Amazon Prime.

"It’s easy to say now, because we won twice in a row, but in a world of chaos you have to try and stay calm, keep some perspective on things.

"There’s so much football to be played, so many twists and turns. Sometimes, the noise was a lot.

"It’s very important to put things in perspective, keep your head down, work and get out of where we were. All of you know, dealing with a squad of 25 players, some young, a couple older, everyone lives a different life."

Wayne Rooney was a pundit for Amazon Prime on Tuesday, and was standing next to Van Dijk during the interview.

Van Dijk had labelled Rooney's criticism of Liverpool as "lazy", and the centre-back felt some pundits went over the top in their assessment of Liverpool's troubles.

He added: "I wasn’t affected but others were. Of course, it’s a fair criticism, if you lose four or five in a row, it’s normal in that sense. But I think also it’s over the top.

"I want to perform for the team, the club, and every one of the supporters. When we lose games, it hurts me so much. I want to turn this around, because I see the hard work we put in every day, the quality we have."

Only Bayern Munich (11), Juventus (nine) and AC Milan (seven) have inflicted more defeats on Madrid in the European Cup/Champions League than Liverpool (five – level with Inter and Manchester City).

And Van Dijk believes the Reds' defensive display was the foundation of their triumph.

"The defence is hopefully the basis of success. Arsenal are flying and it’s down to the basis of clean sheets and not conceding chances," he said.

"That’s what we had as well. It starts with defending. You saw the hard work, we have to keep going. Sunday’s going to be another difficult one [against Manchester City]."