VIRGIL VAN DIJK has hit back at rivals wallowing in Liverpool’s Champions League final loss and says they “should be jealous” of the Reds’ achievement.
Jurgen Klopp’s men have taken a pasting on social media following Real Madrid’s 3-1 win, especially as keeper Loris Karius gifted two goals with monumental errors.
But Van Dijk, 26, told talkSPORT: “Of course we should be proud of ourselves.
“All the teams in England want to be in our position right now.
‘They act like they’re happy, but I think they should be jealous. ”
Real substitute Gareth Bale diverted some attention from Karius – with an all-time great overhead goal and his comments afterwards suggesting he wants to move elsewhere to become a regular starter.
But it was Liverpool’s misfortune that dominated much of the post-match response on social media.
Van Dijk, though, believes reaching the final in Kiev will inspire Liverpool next term.
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The £75million January arrival from Southampton said: “We were here, unfortunately we lost, but I think we need to take this to next season and make sure we do even better than we did this year.”
Meanwhile, Golden Boot winner Mo Salah claims he will be fit for the World Cup finals after Liverpool lost the star striker – and so much momentum – when he went off against Real with a shoulder injury.
The Egypt skipper, 25, said: : “It was a very tough night, but I’m a fighter.
“Despite the odds, I’m confident that I’ll be in Russia to make you all proud.”
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Real captain Sergio Ramos has denied deliberately injuring Salah in the incident that ended the former Chelsea flier’s game at 0-0.
But Ramos, 32, tweeted : “Sometimes football shows you it’s good side and other times the bad. Above all, we are fellow pros #GetWellSoon @MoSalah”
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