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Dejan Lovren is talking a class of wide-eyed school kids through his favourite moment of his Liverpool career.

The setting was Anfield in April 2016 when he rose at the far post deep into stoppage time to nod home James Milner's cross in front of the Kop and complete a miraculous victory over Borussia Dortmund.

That European adventure ultimately ended in final heartache. Two years on Liverpool are on the march once again. The prize at stake this time is the biggest in club football.

Lovren is hoping that when he makes his next appearance at St Paul's Junior School in West Derby he has an even better tale to tell.

“That's what I wish,” he told the ECHO.

“The best stories have a win at the end.

“We will give everything to get to the Champions League final. It will be two tough games against Roma but I believe in our team.”

Lovren met some 340 pupils, posing for photos and signing autographs for delighted youngsters.

The visit forms part of the club's scheme to provide a safe environment for local children to meet their heroes after players were told not to stop outside Melwood due to health and safety concerns.

“It's always important to not only do the football things but also things like this and give some advice,” he said.

“The kids see that we are just humans like everyone else. It's a great thing to do and I enjoyed it.”

Happy and relaxed, Lovren is in a good place. His struggles earlier in the season are an increasingly distant memory.

The Croatian centre-back has shone alongside January signing Virgil van Dijk – helping Liverpool keep nine clean sheets in their last 14 games. Not only has he shown his quality but also his strength of character.

(Image: Dejan Lovren at St Paul's school in West Derby with the LFC Foundation.)

Asked if this is the most enjoyable spell of a rollercoaster four years for him at Anfield, Lovren said: “It is but it can still be better, definitely.

“We need to secure a top four spot in the Premier League and we've got the Champions League so there's a lot to play for.

“Of course it's good to have clean sheets but it's not just Virgil and myself who have defended well.

“We defend as a team. Look at (Andy) Robertson, look at Trent (Alexander-Arnold), even the midfield and how they have been working so hard – Millie (James Milner), Gini (Wijnaldum) and Hendo (Jordan Henderson.

“Emre is injured but then there's Ox (Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain), one of the most improved players this season.

“It's about team work. We have shown everyone that we can defend well as well as play really nice football. When we don't have the ball we are like a Chinese wall and it's difficult to break us.”

Jurgen Klopp has been determined to keep the focus this week on Saturday's trip to lowly West Brom, but there is no escaping the sense of excitement ahead of Liverpool's first Champions League semi-final for a decade.

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Klopp said that it felt like “a parade” with car horns blaring and fans cheering when the players went for a walk prior to last weekend's home win over Bournemouth.

Lovren knows what the Champions League means to Kopites and how much they crave a sixth European crown.

The defender views that as a source of inspiration ahead of Tuesday's first leg with Roma at Anfield.

Lovren said: “I think it was the nice weather, when it rains and we go for those walks there aren't so many people!

“I'm joking, it's amazing to have that support and it's something that helps us. We know that they are behind us in every moment.

“The atmosphere in the last round against Man City was brilliant. This is our 12th man on the pitch.

“We know what it means to the fans and it means the same to us. We breathe the same air, we breathe together, we want to achieve big things together.

“Of course we are satisfied with this but we know we can do much, much better.

“There is no limit for us. I believe we can do so many great things with this team.

“The manager believed in us from day one and that's the most important thing. Also the supporters see that we can beat anyone when we defend well because we will always create chances with this team.”

Liverpool avoided Real Madrid and Bayern Munich in the draw for the last four but Lovren insists that Roma doesn't provide Klopp's men with an easier route to Kiev.

“Maybe some people just look at the names and say Real or Bayern are bigger names, but Roma beat Barcelona 3-0 so you need to really respect them a lot,” he said.

“When you get to the semi-final there are no favourites. People talk about us and how we play and they see us in the final, but we have got two games against Roma and to get to the final we need to be even better than we were against Man City.”

Does being at home for the second leg give Roma an advantage?

“To be honest, maybe looking back, you think that having the second game at home is quite important, but in the tie against Man City we showed we can play well away against big teams,” he said.

“If we can get a positive scoreline here then they will need to attack when we go to Rome and then we will have our chances. We have nothing to be afraid of.”

Liverpool's 2-1 win at the Etihad in the second leg of the quarter-final as they completed a 5-1 triumph on aggregate was arguably Lovren's finest performance for the club. Time and time again he put his body on the line to repel City's star-studded attack.

"With such a big amount of pressure on that game it was quite difficult but we did it brilliantly," he said.

"People on the TV said 'wow, that was intense'. Imagine us on the pitch trying to keep calm!

"It's a learning process. We did things wrong earlier in the competition against Sevilla, going from 3-0 up to 3-3. That's something we will always remember - to never stop playing football and to keep going on."

Lovren limped off against Bournemouth last weekend but fitness fears have since been allayed.

“I have an ongoing issue with my groin. When I get fatigued the issue comes back and it makes me really struggle,” he explained.

“After two or three days rest, I felt so much better."

Whatever happens over the coming weeks, Lovren is buoyant about the future under Klopp. Man City may have strolled to the Premier League title this time around but the defender insists next season the Reds will be in the mix.

"Definitely, I am 100% sure that we can do it even better next season," he said.

"If you look at it, we did it quite well last season, we secured a top four spot. Hopefully we will do that again in the next few weeks in an even better position of second or third.

"Next season with some additional new players who will bring more quality, it will make the squad even better. That can only bring more positives."

* Liverpool FC are committed to their first team players visiting schools in and around West Derby after autographs and pictures were stopped outside Melwood for health and safety reasons. The new scheme provides a safer environment for young fans to meet their heroes face to face. The Reds have made multiple visits to five different schools in the West Derby area this season.