Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk looks set to return from injury for their Champions League clash with Real Madrid.

 

Los Blancos head to Anfield in midweek for a crunch first-leg tie in a repeat of the 2022 final between the two sides in Paris.

Jurgen Klopp has faced Real Madrid four times as Reds boss, with three defeats and one draw, including final losses in 2018 and 2022.

Liverpool’s inconsistent start to 2023 has caused frustration for the German coach, but he is edging closer to having a full squad available.

 

Van Dijk returned to the bench in the 2-0 Premier League win over Everton on February 13 after missing six weeks due to a hamstring injury, with Diogo Jota making a late cameo appearance.

Klopp has confirmed the 31-year-old is in the running to feature in the weekend trip to Newcastle, and he could boost the hosts' defense on their Champions League return on February 21.

"I think he will be fit in time." "Yesterday [Thursday] he looked absolutely ready, and today I think he looks the same," as per reports from BBC Sport.

Liverpool's season in numbers shows the highs and lows of their torrid campaign

Liverpool have endured a torrid season. Languishing in the Premier League's mid-table positions, out of the Carabao and FA Cups, and only just remaining in the race for the Champions League positions. But it appears things are finally starting to turn a corner.

Monday's 2-0 Merseyside derby win over Everton was Liverpool back to their elegant best as Jurgen Klopp's Red's finally showcased their attacking capabilities and delivered a performance fans have come to expect in recent seasons.

Their unfancied trio of attackers finally came good and ran their rivals ragged over 90 minutes as Liverpool began to show signs that they might just be able to salvage their season.

The club's treatment room is emptying - slowly but surely - as a trip to the league's toughest defence in Newcastle awaits them on Saturday ahead of a European cup clash with Real Madrid on Tuesday.

Sportsmail delves deeper into the staggering statistics from the season so far that shows Liverpool could be on the verge of transforming their fortunes and finally getting their talented frontline clicking.

The stats to back up Liverpool's attacking talent

The reality is that Liverpool have shocked everyone with their form this season that has seen last season's Champions League finalists stunned by the likes of Wolves, Brighton, and Brentford among others.

Liverpool's new attacking trio of Cody Gakpo, Darwin Nunez, and Mohammed Salah has been criticised for failing to get the best out of each other, but rather than a case of a lack of quality, statistics show crucial decision-making in key moments could be the main problem.

Their lead at the top of the Premier League charts for total shots per 90 minutes on 16.7 efforts demonstrates Liverpool's attackers are creating chances.

The problem is that they are only converting 10.3% of those shots - 12th-worst in the league - raising suspicions that the positions from which Liverpool's forwards are shooting from is the biggest roadblock to success.

Additionally their forwards are creating the second-highest amount of big chances - three per game - but similarly let themselves down by being the second-worst team for converting those openings.

Further evidence highlighting a lack of accuracy is evident in their claim as having hit the woodwork the leading amount of times this season with Liverpool rattling the crossbar and posts 12 times in 21 league outings.

Averaging three big chances each game should give disgruntled Liverpool fans hope that their team can turn things around but boasting the 19th worst big chance conversion rate of just 28.1% means golden opportunities in front of goal are being spurned by ill-placed efforts.

Desperation to exonerate past performances could be one reason why Liverpool's attackers, who have previously thrived, are now struggling to turn chances into goals, but creating chances in front of goal isn't the problem for Liverpool that many might think it is.

A Salah and Nunez strike partnership DOES work

Since arriving at Anfield in an £85m deal from Benfica during the summer, Nunez has been ridiculed for his wayward shooting and failure to link up with Salah as successfully as his predecessor Sadio Mane did.

Admittedly, some of the criticism of the Uruguayan has been justified given Nunez's lowly return of just five goals in 16 top-flight appearances and wastefulness in front of goal a clear problem for Klopp to solve.

But the striking relationship between Nunez and Salah isn't an area of concern and is actually the best in the league in terms of chances created for one another.

The duo are creating a goalscoring chance for one another every 52 minutes they are on the pitch together making their partnership statistically the best rate of any partnership to play 1000+ mins together in the Premier League this season.

Individually there are multiple areas of much-needed improvement if Liverpool are to return to the dominant force they have been for so long under Klopp's reign.

Their affectionately nicknamed 'Egyptian king' should be doing far better than a goal every 233 minutes and needs to drastically improve his shot conversion rate of just over 10% that is another worrying suggestion Salah's impact is possibly waning.

Partner Nunez is also struggling despite boasting a marginally better goal every 212 minutes but has failed to capitalise on his expected goals of 0.72 each match and will be disappointed to see he currently averages less than one successful dribble per game.

Individually they need to improve, but if Nunez and Salah can click as they did against Everton in their two-goal victory over Sean Dyche's side then they have the potential to form a formidable goalscoring partnership that their opponents should be wary of.

Cody Gakpo is finding his feet but needs time

Liverpool's steal of Gakpo from under arch-rivals Manchester United's nose was celebrated emphatically when the Dutchman arrived at the club in the January transfer window.

His star-studded performances for former side PSV Eindhoven has earned him a move to the Premier League giants, but it's been a tricky start to life in the north-west for the winger.

However, a first club goal against Everton rounded off a smart showing from the 23-year-old talent. In the 337 minutes he has played so far for Liverpool, Gakpo has outperformed both Salah and Nunez for dribbles, managing a 57.1% success rate that is only beaten by currently-injured Luis Diaz.

And an average of 5.1 touches in the opposition box per 90 minutes shows Gakpo is also becoming more involved in games as he gets used to the intensity of the English top-tier.

Reds supporters will be delighted to see that he has also increased his touches in the opposition box to over five, more than Diogo Jota but still fewer than the squad's other attackers.

There is room for improvement in becoming a potent goalscoring threat, with Gakpo currently creating just 0.48 expected goals per game and yet to register an assist for the club, but all signs appear to be moving in the right direction for the star, however supporters must be patient with him.

Will Liverpool's returning stars make a difference?

Much has been made of Liverpool's injuries this season with their squad ravaged of its attacking talent, with Diaz, Jota, and fan-favourite Roberto Firmino all side-lined with lengthy injuries at times this term.

That trio has been working hard to regain fitness. Jota and Firmino made their awaited returns against Everton and Diaz could soon be available for selection much to the relief of Klopp and his backroom staff.

Brazilian striker Firmino has been crucially missed not only because of his title-winning experience with the club but also because of the goal threat he poses. In the 14 league games he has managed this season, Firmino has bagged seven goals, one less than Salah and in 805 minutes fewer.

Firmino also records Liverpool's highest shot conversion rate of 21.2% per 90 minutes, closely followed by fellow injured star Diaz, 18.8%.

Diaz has become one of the Premier League's most explosive attackers since joining the club midway through last season and has been a huge miss in attack for the Reds.

The 26-year-old leads the club for successful dribbles, completing 58.6 of them and coming in as runner-up to Firmino on touches each game, managing 57.7 touches every 90 minutes.

Jota's direct running has been another huge miss for the struggling outfit but it's been hard to see how much impact he could have had on Liverpool's season given he only managed five Premier League outings before being injured in the build-up to the World Cup.

However, his creativity has been a big miss throughout the season with no player at the club able to rival the 2.9 chances that Jota makes over 90 minutes.

Injuries play their part in every team over the course of a season but Liverpool have been hit incredibly hard as key attacking personnel began to drop like flies.

They will of course return, and when they do, Liverpool will undoubtedly demonstrate that form is temporary but class is permanent.