Liverpool, Nov 9 : Liverpool captain Virgil Van Dijk claimed the side will be striving to make it a 'perfect hat-trick' of victories with a win over Aston Villa. Liverpool have been loving life under Arne Slot and are at the top of both the Premier League and the UEFA Champions League table with the international break looming.  

'After two big Anfield wins in a row, we would love to make it a perfect hat-trick this weekend. Our Premier League victory over Brighton & Hove Albion last weekend was important, with the team showing its character and quality to come back after a difficult first half. And to follow that up with a big performance against Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League on Tuesday night felt equally significant.

'When you play as we did against the current champions of Germany, a team that has been among the best in Europe over the last 12 months or so, you can only take confidence,' Van Dijk wrote in his column in the official matchday programme.

The side's 2-1 win over Brighton and Hove Albion on November 2 saw them reclaim the top position in the Premier League table, after having slipped down to second place with a 2-2 draw against Arsenal. With Arsenal and Manchester City having lost against Newcastle United and AFC Bournemouth respectively, the Reds hold a two-point lead over the defending champions.

The side then followed that with a solid performance as Liverpool breezed past German champions Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday with a resounding 4-0 victory at the Anfield Stadium, a game in which the in-form Luis Diaz scored a hat-trick. The win continued the team's winning record in the tournament and are the only side to have won all four opening games.

'It is hard not to be impressed by what Villa have achieved under Unai Emery in the last couple of seasons. They are one of the strongest teams in the Premier League and have enjoyed a really good start to their Champions League campaign too. Their collective organisation, combined with their individual quality, makes them a really tough opponent for anybody.

'We need to be at our best to beat them, then. We knew that this block of fixtures was going to be really difficult ' and we have another equally tough set coming up ' so if we could head into the final international break of the year with another three points in the bag, we would be extremely satisfied,' added Van Dijk.

/IANS