Virgil Van Dijk sent a message of intent to Liverpool's Premier League rivals as the new season moves closer.
The Reds narrowly missed out to Manchester City in the hunt for the Premier League title last season, however they did go all of the way in the Champions League as they defeated Tottenham Hotspur in the final.
It's been a difficult pre-season for Jurgen Klopp's side, but the season gets properly underway when they take on Pep Guardiola's side in the FA Community Shield on Sunday - a game that Van Dijk believes must act as a signal of intent against their title rivals.
He said: “We have to be at our top level.
“If we play like we did against Napoli on Sunday, we won’t win the Community Shield, it’s as simple as that.
“But we have a good week to prepare ourselves with a friendly as well, which is good for the boys who are coming back. We will definitely be ready for City.”
He added: “Obviously we want to improve, and the only way to do that is to play games and play better than we did against Napoli.
“Everyone knows the players who are missing are important players for us. That’s a fact. But we have to deal with it in this situation.”
