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What's the story?
Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk has claimed that Lionel Messi is the best player in the world but they are not afraid to face him.
In case you didn't know...
Messi will turn 32 in just a couple of months but the Blaugrana captain is enjoying one of the best campaigns of his glittering career. The Argentine genius netted his 46th goal of the season which helped Barcelona secure their 8th LaLiga title in the last 11 years. Thanks to his exploits, the Catalan giants are well on course for their third treble in history.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner remains the leading scorer in the Champions League with 10 goals and also leads the race for European Golden Shoe with 34 league goals. Messi played a vital role to knock out Lyon and Manchester United in the knockout stages of the Champions League.
On the other hand, Liverpool are still fighting for the Premier League title. The Reds sit second in the league table, just one point behind the leaders Manchester City. Virgil van Dijk is arguably the most pivotal player for Jurgen Klopp and won the PFA Players' Player of the Year award last week.
The heart of the matter
The 31-year-old Argentine's impact on the pitch remains second to none but Van Dijk insists that they are ready to face him.
Speaking in an interview, Van Dijk said:
"I think he is the best player in the world. But you see how we play and how we defend.
"We don't defend one v one, we defend all together and we attack all together as well so we will see. We will be ready.
"The situation is that we are in the semi-final against Barcelona and we are going to face the best player in the world but it is not only him, the whole team has a lot of quality.
"We will prepare well and we have also a very good team so we can compete there. It is not like we are going there for a holiday."
What's next?
Barcelona will host Liverpool in their Champions League semi-finals first leg on Wednesday night at the Camp Nou before facing them in the return leg next week at Anfield.
