The stat that shows that Roberto Firmino is thriving under Jurgen Klopp

With the unlikely presence of Leicester City now top of the league thanks to Jamie Vardy’s continued purple patch, there is a sense of renewed optimism now for several teams of breaking into the promised land of the top four.

The Reds travelled to face Manuel Pellegrini’s side on the back of a 2-1 loss to Crystal Palace at Anfield prior to the global break, looking to get back to winning ways and managed to do just that, winning 4-1 in a fantastic attacking performance which displayed the progress Liverpool have already begun to make under Jurgen Klopp.

A returning Sergio Aguero reduced the deficit before half-time but Liverpool, who missed a host of glorious opportunities, finally made the game safe with 10 minutes remaining thanks to a fantastic Martin Skrtel half-volley.

“We didn’t create chances we concede four goals we could have conceded three or four more”.

“The gaffer has given us a lot of belief”. At home, it’s a different game and teams might come and sit back and we need to improve that side. “It shows the quality we do have”. It wasn ” t because of the weather and it wasn ” t a problem with Brendan Rodgers because he is a brilliant manager. “If we can get the home form right we won’t be too far away”.

Coutinho put on a dominant performance in Saturday’s 4-1 win, finishing with a goal and an assist while partnering very well with Roberto Firmino in the attack.

“What we try to do is to analyse the opponent and see what their biggest strength is and things we can do that they don’t feel confident [defending against] then we try to do it”, Klopp said, when quizzed about the tactical setup.

One picture – Adam Lallana, the ultimate manifestation of the Rodgers ornamental style, in exhilarated embrace with his manager after putting in a shift you associate with James Milner – painted 1,000 words about Klopp as an agent of change. “Each game, he’s getting better and better”. Him and [Philippe Coutinho] combined well and he was top class. I don’t think that way.

“I thought we were outstanding”. It was not one name or another name who was to blame, it was the whole team.

The 29-year-old’s own performance was very promising, following a slow start to life on Merseyside, and he is well aware of the importance of the result, with a busy run of fixtures on the horizon.

At this juncture, we felt it was a good time to remind Liverpool fans of this typically arrogant tweet sent out back Sterling back when he sealed his move to City.

It was a case of deja vu for Milner, who has seen bosses come and go on a regular basis during a long career with Leeds, Newcastle, Aston Villa and City.