I've been over in Marbella to interview Jurgen Klopp ahead of the Champions League final.

And being around the Liverpool squad, I honestly couldn't believe it.

I couldn't quite believe how relaxed the players were.

I asked the manager this, and he confirmed it. He said the boys were relaxed, they were in the rest and rehabilitation stage at the moment and will then go on to begin the hard work.

As a group of players, you get the impression they are more than ready for a very difficult task.

That Liverpool on Sunday clinched Champions League qualification for next season will have helped the mood, absolutely.

In an ideal world, they'd have done without the pressure of needing something from that Brighton game.

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But no matter what happens in Kiev, it's already been a good season for Liverpool. The Champions League final will determine whether it can be regarded a great one.

(Image: Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

The top four is becoming harder and harder to secure, so competitive is the Premier League at the top end.

In most other countries, if you finish above teams such as Arsenal and Chelsea you are champions, not finishing fourth.

You only have to look at the gap that has grown between Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal to know the difference between being in the Champions League and being out of it.

You can't afford to miss out. And successive top-four finishes will make such a difference to Liverpool. Financially it makes a difference, of course, but in terms of football it provides so much more.

People have seen this Liverpool team in a different light this season because of their performances in the Champions League this season.

Yes, they have had some wonderful displays in the Premier League that have given them belief, but it's in Europe they have made the bigger strides.

When I was preparing for the European Cup final back during my first season at Liverpool in 1985, we didn't go away to a training camp.

In fact, we were playing a league game at Goodison six nights before the final. We then trained for a few days before heading out to Brussels. It wasn't a problem.

(Image: Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

Having 13 days to prepare for the final, as Liverpool have, can go either way. It depends on the manager, and it depends how the squad spend their time.

Some managers like their teams to be playing, while others, such as Klopp, appreciate the time on the training ground to prepare their team.

Liverpool needed a bit of rest. And the break will have given Klopp opportunity to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the opposition.

He'll have seen some flaws in Real Madrid. He will work on that, because that's his strength as a coach.

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So I can understand why Klopp is happy to have such a long build-up to the final.

If Liverpool lose, he'll ensure it's because the opposition were better, and not due to a lack of preparation from his players.