Virgil van Dijk wants Liverpool to begin Tuesday's Champions League second leg against Manchester City with the mindset that the tie is goalless.

The Reds take a 3-0 advantage into the return meeting of the quarter-final clash after an emphatic performance proved too much for the Premier League leaders last Wednesday.

But, as he looked ahead to the decisive 90 minutes at Etihad Stadium, Van Dijk insisted that he and his teammates must forget the lead they hold when the game kicks off.

The Netherlands international also discussed the way to overcome fatigue as Liverpool face a third fixture in six days, his experience with the club so far, and the huge interest surrounding the encounter.

Read on for a summary of his press conference…

On how Liverpool will approach the game…

It is pretty clear that defending a 3-0 lead here is going to be a bit of a strange situation. But I think we need to come here with the mindset that it is still 0-0; we want to win the game and we know we’re capable of scoring goals. We know also that as a team we can defend pretty well and very compact. You could see in the second half [at Anfield] we played them [well]. But the main thing is that we definitely need to keep a mindset of winning the game instead of defending a lead.

On whether the Reds will deploy the same strategy as at Anfield…

Well, yesterday was a recovery day because we played on Saturday, so today we will have a talk, a meeting, and that will prepare us very well for the game. Even on the matchday we will discuss and prepare even better.

On whether City are ‘vulnerable’ after back-to-back defeats…

We have played them at Anfield already; obviously they have so much quality, they’re going to win the league and that’s pretty clear – that’s not for no reason. But we know what we’re going to face, we know their strengths and we know their weaknesses. We need to be 100 per cent and even more to finish the game off.

On how Liverpool would react if City scored early…

We need to stay calm, that’s the main thing. But we’re not going to think we’re going to concede early because that’s not the mindset we want going into the game. We know we need to be 100 per cent and try to do the same things we did in the first half against them. If we do that and everyone is ready for it, it’s going to be a difficult night for them as well.

On whether the clean sheet in the first leg provides confidence…

I think we’re full of confidence anyway. Apart from the 3-0 lead, we played well against them, especially in the first half where we had three amazing goals. And then in the second half where we defended as a unit, it was fantastic as well. So we’re pretty confident. But we know it’s going to be a totally different game tomorrow; they need to come and we need to be ready and prepared for everything. We want to win the game.

On whether he agrees with Pep Guardiola that the Reds are the worst team to face when 3-0 down…

Being 3-0 down against anyone isn’t good, but as a team we feel like we are in a great moment at the moment. I think we can make it difficult for any team in the world. But we need to show it, we need to be ready – ready for a fight and a good game. And we will be.

On fatigue not being an issue because of the magnitude of the match…

Three games in six days is hard for anyone, but I think we were ready before the Everton game as well. Unfortunately, we didn’t win that one, but tomorrow we want to win again and we’re going to be prepared and ready for whatever comes.

On coping with so many games and how it feels…

I can handle it, definitely. It’s hard, it’s tough and it’s only one-and-a-half months left of games and then a well-deserved break. But as a football player, you want to play games and you want to compete, especially at the time we are at right now, playing for the Champions League semi-finals. Even the other day, playing the Merseyside derby. It’s just amazing, an amazing time to be a Liverpool player.

On whether the move to Liverpool has been everything he hoped for…

I came to Liverpool to achieve everything that is possible. That it happened in the winter was fantastic news for me and my family. You hope to try to settle as quickly as possible within the group and, apart from football, with living with the family as well. I think it went pretty well so I am just enjoying every day, every bit of it. I am around fantastic players, with a fantastic coaching staff, amazing fans and a great stadium to play in. So I am just enjoying every bit of it.

On the team’s goalscoring exploits in the tournament and whether they have ‘come alive’ in the Champions League…

I think that’s pretty clear, yes – a lot of goals, a lot of great results. It has been a great campaign so far and hopefully we can make the next step tomorrow night.

On the global interest in the game…

It is pretty clear with all of you guys here! It’s massive, massive for everyone. We definitely know how special it can be for us Liverpool players and the fans if we hopefully go through to the semis. We are not there yet – we need to finish the job. It’s going to be a very hard task but I am looking forward to it.