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Virgil van Dijk believes an electric Anfield atmosphere will inspire Liverpool in their Champions League quarter-final with Manchester City.

The club’s £75million record signing is relishing the prospect of Wednesday night’s first leg as the Reds look to take control of the tie.

Van Dijk missed the league win over Pep Guardiola’s side due to injury back in January but says Liverpool will take belief from that thrilling 4-3 triumph.

“It’s very exciting,” he said.

“It’s the quarter-finals of the Champions League and I’ve never played at this stage before. I’m looking forward to playing in a fantastic atmosphere at Anfield and hopefully we will be enjoying it afterwards as well.

“I’ve watched big European games at Anfield before and I know they are very special. The atmosphere will definitely help us a lot. It’s down to us as players to deliver on the pitch.

“We know they are beatable, definitely, but this is a different game. Wednesday is only the first leg. We need to keep our focus and prepare well.”

The eagerly anticipated tie will see the two front-runners for Player of the Year go head to head with Mohamed Salah against Kevin de Bruyne. The Dutch defender believes 37-goal Salah has the edge over the Belgium international.

“Mo is my Player of the Year but I can’t vote for my own team-mate,” he said.

(Image: Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)

“He has been so consistent and he’s been a key player for us. He has shown it week in, week out and he definitely deserves it.”

Liverpool warmed up for City with a scrappy 2-1 win at Crystal Palace on Saturday. Van Dijk doesn’t believe that disjointed performance was cause for concern ahead of Wednesday night.

“We had to really fight for it,” he added.

“We knew before that it would be a difficult game. Other big teams have struggled at Palace. For us it was about just getting three points and in the end we were very happy with the result.

(Image: Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)

“It’s very difficult to come back after the international break and play at the level we want to be at. Of course we need to be much better but it was always going to be about the result rather than the performance. It was a big win for us.

“We know it’s going to be a big test against City with two hard games. But these are the kind of games you want to be involved in and we’re looking forward to it. We will recover and then prepare right for Wednesday night.”

Victory took Liverpool a step closer to nailing down a top-four finish. They are 10 points clear of fifth-placed Chelsea, who have a game in hand.

“Top four isn’t confirmed yet but we knew that playing Palace was a crucial game for us,” Van Dijk said.

“After the international break it’s not easy to play well. We’re happy with the result but we’ve still got a lot to play for.

“Everyone wants to play in the Champions League. With the quality we have in this team it’s where we should be every season. We need to keep showing that on the pitch.”