Jürgen Klopp said Liverpool would not be deflated by missing out on the Premier League title with an astonishing 97 points but admitted it would take “close to perfection” to usurp Manchester City as champions.

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Liverpool ended their title challenge with a 30th win of the season, at home to Wolves, with Alisson keeping a club-record 21st clean sheet and Sadio Mané sharing the Golden Boot with Mohamed Salah – and Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – on 22 goals.

But the third-biggest points haul of all time in England’s top division was not enough to land a first league title in 29 years for Liverpool, who have the Champions League final to come against Tottenham on 1 June. Their manager insisted he had no concerns the monumental effort only to finish second would have a lasting psychological impact on his players.

“I’m not worried,” Klopp said. “That was the season we played. Next season we will play a different season. As long as City are around with the quality and the financial power that they have then it’s not like any other team will pass them easily. That’s clear. We need to be very, very close to perfection to win the Premier League as long as this is the case.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest The Kop was in excellent voice after the match, despite Manchester City’s win. Photograph: David Blunsden/Action Plus via Getty Images

“But we made unbelievably big steps and I really expect more to come, that’s the truth. What that means in the end, I don’t know. But if you see whatever happens to you in life as the only chance you ever had, then I feel a bit sorry for you to be honest.

“There’s a lot to come, a lot of years; it’s all about you and what you do with it, and that’s what we do with it. People will tell us it’s 30 years [since Liverpool won the league] but they have bigger problems, to be honest. We will go again. This team tried it the first time and I really think they did it quite impressively for a first time. And to be on this road and also qualify for the Champions League final is pretty special.

“This team is one of the best to have ever played for Liverpool but we play in a league with other very good teams and we have to accept that, no problem. We will go again, 100%. But give me a few hours to get over what happened today.”

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Klopp congratulated City on retaining the title and admitted the commotion in the crowd when Brighton took the lead on the south coast had a destabilising effect on his team. “It’s difficult to prepare a team for a situation like that, to say: ‘If we score and Brighton score, stay calm,’” he said. “It was going nuts. Then it was difficult. Then it calmed down and it was clear when the atmosphere was not that ecstatic any more that something happened at Brighton which we didn’t like.”

Despite his pride in Liverpool’s performance this season Klopp was relatively subdued in his post-match press conference and did not hide his disappointment at being pipped on the line by City.

He added: “It’s disappointing. It’s not a wonderful moment but we have enough time to feel how brilliant the season was: 97 points is incredible. And only because City is there it’s not enough. In every other country it would have been easily enough but here. No problem with that. That is the competition we are in.

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“It’s not the competition of 30 years ago, 20 years ago or 10 years ago. It’s completely different. These boys were really ready for it and they have my maximum respect. Not only them because I have to say I know a lot of people will say the Liverpool supporter base are so desperate to win a league, and how they follow this path and our way is just incredible.

“This club is in its best moment for a long, long time and it will not end because there is one team with a point more. We will keep going. If you would have thought before the season that we would have 97 points everyone would have taken it but then somebody decided there is another team with 98 points. That’s how it is.”