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Jurgen Klopp insists he has no “master plan” for his managerial career as the Liverpool boss declared: “We still have so much to achieve here."

The German coach's current contract runs until 2022 – seven years after he took over the Anfield hot-seat.

That was also the length of his tenure at both Mainz and Borussia Dortmund, but Klopp dismissed the idea that it's mapped out that he will only stay at Liverpool for the same period.

The 51-year-old has transformed the club's fortunes over the past three-and-a-half years – securing three successive top-four finishes in the Premier League and reaching three cup finals.

But the Reds boss is desperate to finally have some silverware to show for that progress. The coming weeks provide a huge opportunity to put that right with Liverpool challenging for the Premier League title and in the semi-finals of the Champions League.

“The only thing with the seven years is it is pure coincidence,” Klopp said.

“When they offered me a contract I did not say: ‘Yeah, that will take me to seven.' It looks like a big master plan!

“A lot of people reminded me that when I first came here I signed a three-year contract and I said in four years if we're sat here we probably would have won something. It didn’t happen yet.

“Look, both sides – the club and myself – have a wonderful commitment that we really try everything to make the club as successful as possible.

“How long it will take, I have no clue. The position we are now in I am really happy with.

“Not that it is the final position where we want to be, but the awareness from outside of the club, where we are, second time in the Champions League semi-final. That is really special.

“So many teams tried this year again and it did not happen for different reasons. Of course you need luck in some moments. We needed it. Before the Napoli home game, who would have thought we would be in the semis again?

“It's a good moment but it's not where we want to be at the end. We have a lot to improve. Our problem is the other teams do not sleep and have made a lot of good decisions as well. I don't know how long it will take.”

It was four years ago this week that Klopp announced that he would be leaving Dortmund after asking to be released from his contract.

Klopp, who ended up having a five-month sabbatical before answering Liverpool's call to take over from Brendan Rodgers, believes a parting of the ways benefited both the Bundesliga club and himself.

“I felt relief at the time,” Klopp said.

“For me, it was the right decision. The gamble in terms of other clubs, I didn’t really think about it.

“Over the years I always had offers from different clubs. I wanted to be out for a year. That is a long time in football. You cannot think maybe they do this or that, I didn’t think about it.

“It was quite emotional a few weeks later when the season was finished. When I look back it was how it should be. If you leave friends you should feel a bit sad and emotional and we all were.

“We still have good contact. It was the right decision for Dortmund as well and for me 100%.

“There was no gamble. I did not gamble maybe this would happen or that would happen. I was happy that only a few asked in the next summer and I could say: ‘No, I do not want to talk.'

“After four months this wonderful club came and for me it was the right time again. Now it is already longer than three years.”

The agonising near misses of recent years, including defeat to Real Madrid in last May's Champions League final, fuel the hunger for glory as the focus turns to Sunday's must-win Premier League clash at Cardiff City.

"We still don't feel the pressure. We see and feel it as an opportunity," Klopp said.

"We have these unbelievably strong opponents. We have to win all our games which is difficult enough, and on the other side our opponent is Man City. That makes life not easy. In the Champions League the situation is the same, we play Barcelona.

"There are not a lot of stronger teams in the world out there so how can we think we are halfway through? We are in it. That’s it. And if you are in it, you can win it and that is what we try.

"That is how we see it for a long time. I do not see a massive difference in this situation except it is a more positive fight to last year, fighting for the Champions League (places) is real pressure because it changes a lot if you are in or not.

"Fighting for the league is much more positive. That is what we try but it is still a tough job. Now we can sit and talk but on Sunday we have to sweat a lot and work a lot and go through really difficult moments. If we do that we have a chance to win there as well.”