Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk has urged his side to “keep going” after a resurgent performance saw the English champions edge Real Madrid 1-0 in the Champions League on Tuesday.

Prior to this win, Liverpool had struggled with form, losing six of their previous seven matches and failing to keep a clean sheet in 10 consecutive games. Their 2-0 victory over Aston Villa on Saturday had already hinted at a turnaround, and the Merseyside clash with the 15-time European champions confirmed it.

Real Madrid arrived in free-scoring form, but Liverpool’s defense, led by Van Dijk, limited their opportunities, with goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois denying the visitors a more humiliating result.

“It’s easy to talk now because we’ve won twice in a row,” Van Dijk said. “In a world of chaos, you have to stay calm and keep perspective. We all know how football works—it can change overnight.”

Arsenal currently lead Liverpool by seven points in the Premier League and have also dominated in the Champions League, winning all four of their opening games and keeping eight consecutive clean sheets.

“You can see Arsenal are flying right now, largely thanks to clean sheets and not conceding chances,” Van Dijk added. “We have the quality to hurt anyone on the break, but it starts with defending. Today, you saw the hard work. We have to keep going. Sunday will be another tough test.”

Liverpool face another major challenge on Sunday when they take on Manchester City, where Van Dijk will face off against Erling Haaland, who has scored 26 times this season for club and country.

Manager Arne Slot also highlighted the importance of returning to Anfield for Liverpool’s recent revival. Of the Reds’ six defeats this season, only two have come at home, one of which was a heavily rotated side fielded against Crystal Palace in the League Cup.

“It helps to play in front of these fans and to host a team like Real Madrid because it brings out the best in my players and our supporters,” Slot said. “It was a great performance against a team that has only lost once all season. Maybe it could have been even better, but it was impressive.”

Trent Alexander-Arnold received a hostile reception as a late substitute, returning to Anfield after a decorated spell with the club, where he won seven major trophies. His successor at right-back, Conor Bradley, has had an inconsistent start to the season but shone against Real Madrid, neutralizing the threat of Vinicius Junior.

Van Dijk and Ibrahima Konaté also played key roles in keeping Kylian Mbappe quiet.

“I said before the game that Vinicius and Mbappe combined for 24 goal contributions this season,” Slot noted. “To win, you have to make sure those two don’t get on the scoresheet. Conor was outstanding—going one-on-one against Vinicius so many times isn’t easy, but he handled it brilliantly today.”