Virgil van Dijk makes honest admission as Champions League prediction made

Today's Liverpool news sees Virgil van Dijk speak ahead of the clash with PSG, while Gary Neville makes a prediction about the Reds

Liverpool face Paris Saint-Germain knowing the crucial tie represents their last shot at silverware. Arne Slot's side have persistently underwhelmed this season, falling out of the title race early and being dumped out of the FA Cup and League Cup. It's not going to be easy. Luis Enrique's side hold a 2-0 advantage after they outclassed the Reds in Paris last week, and are the reigning European champions.

While the Reds are on a high after beating Fulham at Anfield on Saturday, their Champions League quarter-final second leg will present a different challenge altogether.

Today's Liverpool news sees a former Man United star make a prediction about the Reds' Champions League qualification hopes next season, while club captain Virgil van Dijk has sent a message to fans ahead of the PSG tie.

Van Dijk's admission

Van Dijk has admitted that the Reds must produce something special against PSG or face elimination from this season's Champions League. The centre-back has also called on the power of Anfield to help players overturn a daunting-looking 2-0 deficit.

"We need something very special to happen otherwise we will have no chance," the Liverpool captain said. "If we play like we did in Paris then we will have no chance anyway, in my opinion.

"The fans will probably be the most important factor, together with our performance. I've been very lucky to experience those nights where the connection between the fans and the performance has been unbelievable.

"There is an opportunity on Tuesday to come up with a good game plan and fight for it for 90-plus minutes. I am really looking forward to it. It's a privilege to be in the quarter-finals regardless. We shouldn't take that for granted. We have to remember we are Liverpool. We have to make it a memorable night."

Champions League prediction

Ex-United captain Gary Neville has backed Arne Slot's side to get the job done and qualify for next season's Champions League by claiming a top-five place in the Premier League come the end of the season.

The Reds have endured a rotten defence of their Premier League title this term, losing 10 games. Their hopes of making it into next season's Champions League have been boosted by the confirmation last week that the Premier League has been guaranteed a fifth qualification spot for next season.

They also helped their cause with a 2-0 win over Fulham on Saturday evening. They picked up three points courtesy of strikes from Rio Ngumoha and Mohamed Salah to leave them in fifth, four points clear of sixth-placed Chelsea, who lost 3-0 at home to Manchester City.

Speaking on the Gary Neville podcast via Sky Sports Premier League, he said: "I think [Chelsea are] going to have a difficult end to the season and it feels to me now like Chelsea will miss out on Champions League football.

"And a few weeks ago, I think they were in a spot whereby I thought Villa were in freefall and that Chelsea, Liverpool and United would get that third, fourth, fifth spot. I actually think now that Chelsea are going to miss out because of what’s happened in this last few weeks and where they're at."

Liverpool have six league games left to play this season and are in the driving seat to secure a top-five finish, but they face difficult away games against Everton, Manchester United and Aston Villa during the run-in.