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Jurgen Klopp believes Liverpool have assembled a squad which will ensure they are competing for the game's biggest prizes for years to come.

The Reds have the opportunity to go seven points clear at the top of the Premier League table if they beat Crystal Palace at Anfield on Saturday.

When Liverpool last challenged for the title in 2013/14 and 2008/09, they fell agonisingly short and quickly slipped back into the pack.

However, Klopp is confident that whatever happens between now and May the foundations are in place for an exciting future.

Andy Robertson this week became the latest key player to sign a new long-term contract – following in the footsteps of Roberto Firmino, Mohamed Salah, Jordan Henderson, Sadio Mane and Joe Gomez. Crucially, all those players are aged 28 or under and yet to reach their peak.

(Image: OLI SCARFF/AFP/Getty Images)

“That is what our owners gave us the opportunity to do,” Klopp said.

“Buying new players is expensive, signing new players is expensive, extending contracts with top players is expensive. That's how it is.

“For that you need the money side of life. It is all good. On the other side, other clubs pay good money as well.

“If they (the players) didn’t believe in the project and wouldn’t enjoy living and working here then they wouldn’t stay.

“Keeping all of them together would mean we would have a better chance of making the next step next season than we had in previous years. But last year we already felt comfortable and could bring in the boys without losing players in the summer.”

Liverpool reluctantly agreed to sell Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona for £142million last January and then Emre Can departed at the end of last season after running down his contract.

But Klopp believes the Reds have bolstered their ranks since then by recruiting wisely. Fabinho arrived to take Can's place and the windfall from Coutinho's exit paid for centre-back Virgil van Dijk and goalkeeper Alisson Becker.

“Yes, we lost Emre who was an important player but we could replace him immediately with Fabinho,” Klopp said.

“And the Phil transfer saw one world class player leave but gave us the opportunity to sign two world class players. That's how it is sometimes.

“We always try to do the next step and it looks like we did it, but I only want to talk about this season.

“It is the most important we've ever played because it is the one we are in. But there will come another one and we have to make sure we are ready for that as well.”

Klopp has enjoyed the rare luxury of a full week on the training field at Melwood ahead of the visit of Palace.

The manager says the intensity and the quality of those sessions is helping to keep standards so high across his squad as they look to maintain their pursuit of glory.

“That’s what you buy when you get these boys. I would like to say that I am responsible for a few of the skills of the boys but I am not. They brought it with them,” Klopp said.

“You have to always make the best of it to bring it together and link it up with all the other things you need.

(Image: Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)

“It’s fantastic, especially for the young boys like Rafa (Camacho), Curtis (Jones), Ki-Jana (Hoever) when they come in. They are a bit shocked (by the standard) and they adapt to it. That's the best sign because it makes me sure they are ready. That’s really, really important. Keeping it over the whole year is a challenge.”

The attacking quartet of Salah, Mane, Firmino and Xherdan Shaqiri boast 42 goals between them already this term.

Asked how that array of talent compared to teams he had previously managed, Klopp said: “Look, I can make a line-up of the 2013 team at Dortmund. My offensive line was Marco Reus, Mario Gotze, Robert Lewandowski and Jakub Blaszczykowski, sometimes Kevin Groskreutz.

“That is an offensive line only if you bring them together at that time again and it is unbelievable. It is a mix of everything: small space, big space, power, creativity.

“I don’t have to compare that. I don’t want to have them back, they’re all good where they are and we’re still friends. But this team is a good one here. Obviously we cannot have 57 points if we are not good.

(Image: JOHN MACDOUGALL/AFP/Getty Images)

“I don’t think too much about my former teams but if I do think about them I cannot avoid having a smile on my face because I was blessed with a few really good players.

“A lot of them were not as good when we came in but when they were together they improved a lot. That is what happened here again.

“Would it have happened for each person if they were not a part of this group? I’m not so sure. The power, the skill and the attitude of all the boys around makes it easier for all of them to step up.

“You do not have to think about this or that any more - in small spaces you have three solutions because the players show up much more. Being confident helps in football.

“The best player in the world with a lower level of confidence, you will never recognise. Usually, they have a higher level of confidence but playing in the right team helps each player in the world to play at his best.”

Klopp has done his homework on Palace, who were the last visiting team to win a Premier League game at Anfield in April 2017.

“I've watched them 51 times!” he joked in reference to Marcelo Bielsa's revelation during the 'Spy-Gate' fall-out this week that the Leeds boss had analysed 51 Derby County games.

Palace are only four points above the drop zone but their last two away results should focus minds. They beat Manchester City at the Etihad and then won at Wolves.

“The percentage possession was 70 or 80 for City. That’s massive,” Klopp said.

“Palace scored a beautiful goal. Hopefully (Andros) Townsend will not do that again! In counter attacks, at set-pieces, it is clear, they are good.

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“But I watched other games too. We need to see them playing football as well. There was not too much in that game.

“That’s why I watched three different types of games, and at least two away games but one home game as well because it gives you a better picture of what they do if you let them. That makes it more important that you don’t allow them.

“If you let Crystal Palace play, they are really good. They play a direct style and they defend pretty deep but at Crystal Palace they did exactly the same and we scored at least one goal on a counter attack after a set-piece. Using situations like this, it’s all important.”