See what Virgil van Dijk says in his programme notes for the start of the new year about the team

In his program notes for the start of the New Year, Virgil van Dijk emphasizes the necessity for Liverpool to now build on the good work they have produced this season.

On the first day of 2024, the Reds play in the Premier League at Anfield against Newcastle United.

They will do so having won 2-0 at Burnley on Boxing Day to take the lead in the division halfway through 19 games.

Van Dijk writes in the matchday program for Newcastle’s visit, discussing the team’s growth throughout the season and why it’s time to “kick on” the challenge.

“A very simple message of Happy New Year is the most important one for our supporters. The captain says, “I genuinely hope that the upcoming year is as positive as it can be for all of the players, and if we can contribute to that as a team, all the better.

Naturally, achieving results is the best way for this to happen, and thus far this season, we haven’t performed too poorly in this area. Our continued participation in every competition we entered speaks for itself, but it also increases our sense of accountability because we now need to build on the solid foundation we have established for ourselves.

When you sign with a team like Liverpool, you take on challenges like this one. After winning a trophy, your attention must shift to the next one. Win the majority of your games, then figure out how to get better so you can win more. Put yourself in a favorable position, and then work even harder to move into an even better one. You should never get carried away because of this.

“It’s not like having success in the season’s first half is meaningless. Of course it does, and as I’ve already stated, it’s given us a solid foundation upon which to build. However, it is still true that any team that started the season strong needs to step it up if they hope to be in a strong position come the business end of the season.

Though others are focusing on the future, we would rather concentrate on the upcoming game because we are still a ways off from that. [Next] involves playing Newcastle United, a team that has made a name for itself at the top of the Premier League and whom we always anticipate to put up a good fight against us.

“Overall, we have positive recollections of our most recent meeting because, in spite of everything, we managed to achieve an amazing outcome. Personally, it was obviously not my day, but collectively, given the challenges we overcame, it is unquestionably one of those days that we can now look back on as a significant turning point in our journey.

“Yet any nostalgia we may feel for that event must also be tempered by the awareness of how hard it was to win, and the explanation for that is straightforward: Newcastle played incredibly well, and we were only able to upset them in the closing moments. Our expectations for this rematch at Anfield are therefore unquestionably unchanged. There is absolutely no doubt that this will be another difficult game.

We also need to make amends because we haven’t won a Premier League game at home in a few games. Our performances against Manchester United and Arsenal were not entirely lacking in merit; in fact, I would contend that they were highly commendable. However, it is imperative that we return to winning ways as soon as possible.

“Apart from the time we played without fans, our home record is something to be proud of and has been for as long as I have been here. Our expectations are very, very high, but once again, that means we have a duty to meet them.

To put it plainly, this means winning as many games as we can, particularly when we’re at Anfield.

As it stands, as players and supporters, we have a lot to look forward to, but we also know that the hard work is only getting started, so let’s see what we can accomplish as a team.