Ranking the 3 most important Liverpool players for the Real Madrid showdown

As Liverpool prepares for the titanic Champions League match with Real Madrid, they do so coming in riding a huge wave of both confidence and momentum.

The most recent outing being a heart-stopping fight back to topple Southampton. Mohamed Salah was the hero once again as he scored the winner and he will be excited for this one.

Real do not come into this match at full strength, just like Arne Slot is dealing with some injuries. However, both these clubs have so much talent throughout their squads the world class players we will see take the pitch for this encounter will be numerous.

I'm here to rank the three Liverpool players that will be the most crucial to securing a famous victory on Wednesday, so let's take a look.

3. Virgil van Dijk

While the defensive work of Ibrahima Konate and Ryan Gravenberch this season has been absolutely essential to the strong start for the Reds, the Captain still plays an integral role.

He's been elite once again this campaign himself, even if he might not be needed as much in the same ways with the emergence of the physical presence of Konate. Having said that, his game reading and leadership are still vital to this Liverpool side.

Coming up against Real Madrid, with the likes of Kylian Mbappe and others fit and raring to go, we are going to need to see van Dijk call on every ounce of his experience to ease the burden on his mates.

The adrenaline is surely going to be high for several players and the stoic but confident demeanor of big Virgil will be crucial to withstanding any early onslaught from the visitors.

His presence, both literally and metaphorically, will be relied upon by Slot to make sure his game-plan is implemented to the exact letter and he should play a big role in the outcome one way or another.

2. Dominik Szoboszlai

His performance on Sunday against the Saints was the kind of outing that we want to see from him at all times. He has every bit of talent to be a difference maker for a truly great club.

He scored a fine goal but it was also his work off the ball; pressing, winning duels and tracking back that makes you dream of the player he can be. His passing range on Sunday was also very strong and this could be an underrated weapon against a Real defense that is beatable.

I think he should start this match, but even if he doesn't, plugging him in the No. 10 hole and letting him create for himself and others could be something that Carlo Ancelotti is not planning for at this moment.

If he can deliver another all-around performance than I think it could bode well for the Reds' chances of securing a win in this matchup.

1. Mohamed Salah

This might be an obvious choice for number one on this list, but when you have a player at the level of Salah, he should be the focal point in huge matches like this one.

He is once again in sparkling form this season and there is no reason to doubt that he will rise to the occasion on again on this stage. He also might have some extra personal motivation as he has some rough history against Madrid.

He might not even need to score a goal in this one and he can still leave a huge impact on proceedings as we have seen his creative side hit an even higher level this season.

The Liverpool attack needs to flow through him in this one and if it does, he could give Real Madrid a nightmare of a night at Anfield.

This will be a game of big stars and huge talents, and with a superstar like Mbappe on the pitch, Salah could still shine the brightest of them all on the night.