Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is confident his side can close the gap to Manchester City next season.

Wild inconsistencies in results – beating Manchester United 7-0 and Bournemouth 9-0 but losing to struggling Leeds, their only home defeat of the season – had left the Reds 20 points adrift of the Premier League leaders going into the weekend.

It has been more common for the two to push each other all the way to the final day of the season, Liverpool twice coming second by just a point, and despite their most recent troubles Klopp expects normal service to be resumed when the new campaign kicks off in August.

“There are two games a season, maybe with cups three, four or five, when you play City, Arsenal and the others,” he said ahead of the trip to struggling Leicester.

“There are five million ways to win a football game, you only have to find one. A successful season is you are ready for all the games, that you can win 25-odd games.

“If City, Arsenal, Chelsea, Newcastle, Tottenham, Man United are all involved in that 25 then it is even better.

“But it is about can we create a team who can win the majority of the games? Yes, we can. It was never about what the other teams do.

“We didn’t become champions by a point twice and there will be some people who say it was because we didn’t have this player in that moment.

“Getting 90-odd points is absolutely insane, pretty special, and no one should take these things for granted.

“The top seven get even closer together, it will be more difficult and more competitive.

“It doesn’t make it easier but everyone with a good idea has a chance to be part of it. If you are part of the battle up there then you can win it as well.”

Liverpool’s current six-match winning run, their best sequence for more than a year, has given a glimpse of the level the side used to – and Klopp believes will again – play at.

The Reds boss has spoken regularly in recent weeks about using the end to the campaign as a platform for next season and has been pleased with the way his squad have responded.

“We show it in six weeks. I’m happy that this question has come and you don’t ask me, ‘how is it you can play such rubbish football for so long?’,” he added.

“I never questioned these boys. Never. Mentality-wise these boys are exceptional but we still couldn’t deliver for long periods of the season consistently good, successful football.

“Is that normal for human beings? The period was a bit too long, but yes.

“For everyone it is a relief to go again, to be winning again in a convincing way and not (having to) scrap three points.

“We have a clear idea of what we want to do and I saw so many good things we could build on.

“Nothing for Match of the Day, it won’t show up there, but I saw so many things in these games.

“I’m absolutely fine with the reaction now but we all think it was a bit too long until we showed it.

“All we can do is go for the last three games and make the best of what we have so far.”

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp admits his side “were around when miracles happened”, but accepts their destiny is not in their hands this time when it comes to Champions League qualification.

A month ago the club were in eighth, 10 points adrift of fourth-placed Manchester United, but six successive victories have propelled them to fifth and only a point behind their rivals, who have a match in hand.

It was suggested to Klopp his squad have performed remarkable comebacks before, not least when overturning a 3-0 first-leg deficit to beat Barcelona in the semi-finals of the Champions League they won in 2019.

They also came from a seemingly impossible position in the Premier League in 2021 when they they made a late run into the top four, registering eight wins and two draws in their final 10 matches – which included goalkeeper Alisson Becker scoring a 90th-minute winner at West Brom – having been completely out of the running in March.

“It is not that we mention it but everyone who was involved in these moments will never forget it in our entire lives,” said Klopp.

“That means it is part of us and, you are right, we were around when miracles happened, that is true, but it was then still in our hands.

“We had to score against West Brom and we had to win against Barcelona. Now we have to win but that does not mean anything changes because the other teams could win all their games.

“I knew weeks ago it was completely out of sight, I couldn’t see it at all, but that did not mean we would not try to get closer. That’s the only thing we did, we got closer.”

Klopp recalls Liverpool being in the position of the team being chased in his second full season in 2017-18, and he knows it is not easy for the clubs in possession of the qualification places.

However, he does not believe their recent run, coupled with recent defeats for third-placed Newcastle and United, has been able to exert that much pressure on their top-four rivals.

“I am pretty sure we were in a situation like that years ago. I think Chelsea was winning all the time behind us so we had to win all the games,” he said.

“It’s not comfortable but in the end we made it anyway. Newcastle and United would be happy if we would not be there any more, but still it is more likely they will do it.

“I respect that. If they finish the season above us, they deserve it and that’s how I see it.”

Forward Roberto Firmino is set to return to training next week ahead of what could be his final Anfield appearance.

The Brazil international is leaving when his contract expires at the end of the season but has missed the last five matches with a muscle problem.

With Liverpool having only one more home game, against Aston Villa next Saturday, there was a chance the 31-year-old would not get to say his goodbyes on the pitch.

But Klopp raised hopes Firmino could be in his squad for an emotional send-off.

“I saw Bobby in training yesterday and it looks like pretty much he is nearly there, but I don’t think he will be in for the weekend,” said the Reds manager.

“If I go out of here and he will be in the session, I would be surprised.

“I assume that we start with him team training-wise after the Leicester game.”

Brentford head coach Thomas Frank has acknowledged managers like himself and Liverpool’s Jurgen Klopp must be aware of their touchline behaviour, but conceded sometimes emotions do get the better of them.

Klopp was charged with improper conduct by the Football Association on Tuesday over his post-match comments about Paul Tierney after he insisted the referee “had history” with the club, having raced down the touchline to celebrate wildly in front of fourth official John Brooks following Liverpool’s stoppage-time winner in the 4-3 victory over Tottenham.

The German has until Friday to respond and this weekend’s visit of Brentford may end up being his last on the touchline if the FA decides to ban the 55-year-old, with Klopp having already served a one-match suspension in November for confronting assistant referee Gary Beswick in their win over Manchester City.

Frank said: “I think we all as managers need to think about how we present ourselves on the touchline and of course we need to be aware of that.

“I try my best but I am not perfect. I have also done things that afterwards I am thinking I should have done a little better there.

“We’re only humans and there is a lot of emotion and pressure in those situations.

“This situation, I don’t know. I don’t know what exactly happened. I guess it is up to Jurgen to explain.

“I think in general Jurgen is coming across very well and then there are some times where we are very emotional and we maybe make a mistake.

“As I said, I try my best but sometimes the emotions and the pressure over time just gets you.”

Bees boss Frank was otherwise full of praise for his opposite number ahead of Saturday’s trip to Anfield, where the visitors will eye an unlikely first ever double over Liverpool.

Last season Brentford suffered a 3-0 loss on Merseyside and their manager reflected on the strangeness of football that Klopp’s side were so close to an unprecedented quadruple in the 2022-23 campaign while now they are set to miss out on the top-four.

“Sometimes I try to get my head around that Liverpool last year were so close to the perfect season,” Frank said.

“They played every possible game they could and just missed out by a point in the league. And they played a Champions League final they should have won, they were unlucky. Now this year they are, in their terminology, struggling a little bit and that is only losing (Sadio) Mane.

“Football is so strange.

“I think the job they have done there over the last four or five seasons should have brought even more titles for them. I think they have been quite unlucky.”

Brentford beat Liverpool at home in January with Yoane Wissa on target, and the forward agreed a new deal with the west London club on Thursday to keep him there until 2026.

Frank said: “He’s a very important player. It is a privilege to have a player that we know can always provide goals.

“I think that is a very important skillset to have in the squad and then it is up to me to find and put the best players on the pitch.

“He is very, very good to work with and fantastic for the group, so I’m very pleased we managed to extend his contract.”

Mohamed Salah may be the man for consistency but fellow forward Darwin Nunez is the player who injects the element of unpredictability which is part of the evolution of Liverpool’s forward line.

Salah became the first player to score in eight successive home matches for the club with his penalty enough to secure a 1-0 victory over Fulham, making it five wins in a row and 12 goals in his last 16 games.

He was starting alongside Nunez and Luis Diaz, which at the start of the season was the expected first-choice forward line until the latter sustained a serious knee injury which sidelined him for six months.

As a result, the Fulham game was only the fifth time they had all begun a game together, but it was Nunez’s return to the starting line-up for the first time in half-a-dozen games which produced the key moment in the first half.

Having lost control 30 yards from goal, he set about regaining possession and nicked it back off Issa Diop inside the penalty area only for the defender to bring him down.

Manager Jurgen Klopp felt the spell among the substitutes helped reignite the Uruguay international, who was played through the middle as opposed to his more regular position out on the left in his maiden season.

“Darwin was like a racehorse, really motivated, really on fire,” said Klopp, who was particularly pleased with how the 23-year-old adapted to the vital counter-pressing role through the middle which has been performed so well by fellow new signing Cody Gakpo recently.

“Absolutely. I think for us it’s super-important. You could see in the beginning, defending the centre against Fulham is really important because Palhinha is there and that is their connector.

“We were a bit too early out there from Darwin, we tried to fix that, but he was like a racehorse – go, go, go, go for everybody.

“We opened up and that’s where we struggle slightly. We could sort that and apart from that he played a really good game, he was always a proper option for us and we needed that.”

But with only a slender lead to protect it was goalkeeper Alisson Becker who, not for the first time in this up and down season for the team, came up with the key moments to keep his first clean sheet in six matches with a good save from Carlos Vinicius.

The Brazil international has now made 100 saves in the current campaign, the first time he has reached triple figures in a single season since joining Liverpool.

“He is is for sure the most consistent player we have this season,” added Klopp.

“That’s actually not bad news, it’s good news, because if we are not in a great shape and the level of the goalie drops as well then we would have been completely lost. So, that’s fine.”

Sam Allardyce claimed he is as good a manager as Pep Guardiola, Jurgen Klopp and Mikel Arteta as he was unveiled as Leeds’ new boss on Wednesday.

Leeds have turned to former England manager Allardyce, 68, in a last-ditch bid to retain their Premier League status after sacking Javi Gracia with four games remaining.

Allardyce, relegated from the top flight for the first time in his 30-year managerial career in his last job at West Brom two years ago, said: “Far too many people think that I am old and antiquated, which is far from the truth.

“I might be 68 and old, but there’s nobody ahead of me in football terms. Not Pep, not Klopp, not Arteta.

“It’s all there with me. They do what they do, I do what I do. In terms of knowledge and depth of knowledge, I’m up there with them. I’m not saying I’m better than them, but certainly as good as they are.”

Former Bolton, Newcastle, West Ham and Everton boss Allardyce takes charge of his first game for Leeds at Guardiola’s title-chasing Manchester City on Saturday.

Having already removed director of football Victor Orta, Leeds announced the departure of Gracia on Wednesday morning along with his backroom staff.

Allardyce said: “I’ve had a lot of responses from many people that I know sending their congratulations. A few others said I must be mad.

“But I enjoy the game so much and to try and save this club and keep it in the Premier League is a big responsibility and a big challenge. But it’s one I’m prepared to take because of who Leeds are.”

Allardyce is the club’s third permanent manager of the season, with Gracia having replaced Jesse Marsch in February.

The former England boss is hoping for an immediate response from a demoralised squad who are languishing in 17th place, out of the relegation zone only on goal difference.

Sam Allardyce must find a way to keep Leeds up with only four matches remaining (Lynne Cameron/PA)

“It’s probably only the biggest challenge (of my career) because of the shortness of games that are left,” he said.

Allardyce is reported to have agreed a basic salary of £500,000 for his four games in charge, with a £2.5million bonus if he can keep Leeds up.

When asked if there was a chance he would stay at Elland Road beyond the remainder of this season, he said: “Never say never.

“It depends what happens at the end of the four matches and what the conversation is all about, how I feel and more importantly how my wife feels.”

Former MK Dons, Charlton and Oxford boss Karl Robinson will be Allardyce’s assistant and ex-Leeds striker Robbie Keane has also joined the backroom staff.

Allardyce had hoped to have been assisted by Sammy Lee, who is unavailable after being refused permission to cancel jury duty.

“The judge has left Sammy unemployed and wouldn’t let them off,” Allardyce added. “I think it’s very poor judgment indeed. It’s a real shame because he loves being with me and I love having him with me.”

After Allardyce’s first game at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday, Leeds face Champions League hopefuls Newcastle at Elland Road the following week.

The final two games of the season are a trip to West Ham, one of Allardyce’s former clubs, and the visit of Tottenham, who are bidding to qualify for Europe.

Leeds have lost five of their last seven games, with Sunday’s 4-1 reverse at Bournemouth following 4-1, 5-1 and 6-1 defeats to Arsenal, Crystal Palace and Liverpool respectively last month.

On Sunday, fans’ group the Leeds United Supporters Advisory Board issued a vote of no confidence in both the club’s board and Gracia.

The players subsequently issued a statement on Monday apologising for their performance at Bournemouth and for failing to acknowledge fans at the team hotel.

Gracia leaves Leeds after only 11 league games in charge. The Spaniard collected 10 points from his first six fixtures, but a dreadful run of results in April left the club in a downward spiral.

Gracia said in a statement: “I’m grateful for this opportunity and proud of the team, both players and coaching staff. That’s how I would like to summarise my time at Leeds United.

“I would have preferred a different moment, but the circumstances have changed. We arrived on a short three-month contract, and we did it because we believed in this team.”

Liverpool can challenge for Premier League titles again but only if they back Jurgen Klopp in the transfer market, says former Reds defender Kolo Toure.

Since arriving at Anfield in 2015, Klopp's Liverpool have been hugely competitive both domestically and in Europe, winning the Premier League and Champions League while finishing runners-up in those competitions a combined four times.

But this season has been a far cry from those past successes, with Liverpool fighting to finish in the European places rather than competing for the Premier League title and crashing out of the Champions League at the round-of-16 stage.

The Reds splashed out over £100million on forwards Darwin Nunez and Cody Gakpo this season, but Toure believes Klopp must be provided with further spending power to freshen up the squad and get Liverpool back in silverware contention.

Speaking to Stats Perform, Toure said: "They have to look for somebody who has legs again and refresh the team, refresh the squad a little bit, bring in players who have the right mentality.

"They can go again because they have a top manager with them having Jurgen [Klopp], and [they have to] keep him there and make sure they sign the right players for him, then they will bounce again and go and fight for the Premier League, definitely."

Gakpo and Nunez have combined for just 15 Premier League goals this term as Liverpool have failed to keep up with title challengers Manchester City and Arsenal.

Toure feels the pair must do more to fit into Klopp's style of play, saying: "It's been a tough campaign for Liverpool, definitely, but every team goes in a cycle. When you sign players, sometimes they fit, sometimes they don't fit because of whatever reason, you don't know.

"He's signed a few players right now, [Cody] Gakpo and the other striker, [Darwin] Nunez and it's up to them to make sure they can fit in the team. Jurgen is such an incredible manager, he knows how he wants his team to play. But, when you sign players you expect them to fit in your team.

"At the moment, those players have to show that, they have to show more for the team. They haven't done that this season so well. Gakpo needed time to adapt, but he is looking to have the right chemistry in the team, and bringing in new players to refresh the team, to make sure the team can go again. This season will be a transition for them, but next season they're going to be better, definitely."

Liverpool's failure to live up to their past glories under Klopp has seen his job questioned by some, with the German himself saying last month his previous successes were the only reason he had not been sacked.

But Toure, who played under Klopp for one season at Anfield, says the former Borussia Dortmund coach still has more to extract from these players.

"In his time it feels like he has squeezed the team, it feels like he has taken everything out of the team, and it feels like he can't do any more – he would say that," Toure added.

"At the moment, he knows he can still up that team, and that's what he's tried to do. He can help them.

"I think Jurgen is such an intelligent manager and if he feels he has squeezed the team to the maximum, he will just feel it and say definitely. For me, I still feel like this Liverpool team don't need a lot to come back to the top of the league there with the other [teams]."

Liverpool still hold out hope they can scrape into the top four but their late charge for Champions League football could be derailed if manager Jurgen Klopp’s comments about referee Paul Tierney come back to bite them.

Following the dramatic 4-3 victory over Tottenham, in which the Reds needed an added-time winner from Diogo Jota to extend a four-match winning run after squandering a 3-0 lead from the opening 15 minutes, Klopp said he did not know what the official “has against us”.

Klopp was booked for his over-zealous celebration in front of fourth official John Brooks but said of Tierney’s attitude: “What he said to me when he gave me the yellow card is not OK.”

The Professional Game Match Officials Limited was quick to respond, saying in a statement: “PGMOL is aware of the comments made by Jurgen Klopp after his side’s fixture with Tottenham Hotspur.

“Match officials in the Premier League are recorded in all games via a communications system and having fully reviewed the audio of referee Paul Tierney from today’s fixture, we can confirm he acted in a professional manner throughout including when issuing the caution to the Liverpool manager so, therefore, we strongly refute any suggestion that Tierney’s actions were improper.”

But it is Klopp’s suggestion of bias which is likely to land him in trouble with the Football Association and could lead to him receiving a touchline ban for Liverpool’s remaining few matches.

He was previously warned about his conduct after being banned for one match and fined £30,000 after the FA successfully won an appeal against the leniency of his punishment for berating an assistant referee during October’s home win over Manchester City.

The absence of Klopp from the touchline for any or all of Liverpool’s eminently-winnable remaining matches against Fulham, Brentford, Leicester, Aston Villa and Southampton could kill their momentum and blow their outside chances of catching fourth-placed Manchester United, who are currently seven points ahead with a match in hand.

One mistake and the best Liverpool can hope for is Europa League football but they came close to throwing it away against Spurs having coasted into a three-goal lead through strikes from Curtis Jones, Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah.

Harry Kane equalled Wayne Rooney’s Premier League tally of 208 goals just before half-time, leaving only Alan Shearer (260) ahead of him in the all-time list, and when Richarlison’s first league strike in added time followed Son Heung-min’s 77th-minute effort, Spurs looked like they had escaped with an unlikely draw.

However, just 99 seconds after equalising, Jota slotted in his fifth goal in four matches to spark wild – some would argue too wild in Klopp’s case – celebrations as Liverpool’s slim Champions League qualification hopes were kept alive.

“Sometimes we don’t half make it hard for ourselves,” said midfielder Harvey Elliott, back in the side after almost a month.

“We started the game unbelievably well, got three goals in quick succession, and personally I think we took our foot off the gas a little bit and allowed them to play a bit more football while not playing football ourselves.

“It’s a tough one to explain. It’s not a lack of concentration. Maybe because going 3-0 up early hardly ever happens so the way we deal with it is new to us.

“It’s always a hard situation because emotions are high, performing well and then we just decide to switch and didn’t do our game-plan.

“We decided to keep the ball and I felt it was just a bit slow in the way we moved it around and that caused ourselves problems. That’s something we need to snap out of.”

Ryan Mason, two matches into another spell as interim head coach following the sacking of Cristian Stellini after the 6-1 embarrassment at Newcastle, was less interested in Tottenham’s top-four chances now they had dropped to sixth than he was of repairing some of the recent damage.

“My priority is to get some togetherness, create some good feelings and energy around the place and bring our fans with us,” he said.

“The only way to do that is winning matches so it’s difficult to take. We’re just devastated in the way we lost the game.”

The Professional Game Match Officials Limited has refuted Jurgen Klopp’s claims that referee Paul Tierney acted improperly during Liverpool’s 4-3 win against Tottenham on Sunday.

Klopp was shown a yellow card by Tierney for his wild celebrations in front of fourth official John Brooks after Diogo Jota’s stoppage-time winner at Anfield, just 99 seconds after Richarlison had hauled Tottenham level in a seven-goal thriller.

The Liverpool manager pulled his hamstring in the process and in his post-match interview heavily criticised Tierney, accusing the match official of speaking to him in a manner which “was not OK”.

But PGMOL said in a statement: “PGMOL is aware of the comments made by Jurgen Klopp after his side’s fixture with Tottenham Hotspur.

“Match officials in the Premier League are recorded in all games via a communications system and having fully reviewed the audio of referee Paul Tierney from today’s fixture, we can confirm he acted in a professional manner throughout including when issuing the caution to the Liverpool manager so, therefore, we strongly refute any suggestion that Tierney’s actions were improper.”

Klopp faces heavy censure by the Football Association for his comments and touchline behaviour.

The German escaped a touchline ban in October and was instead fined £30,000 by an independent commission following his sending-off for confronting referee Anthony Taylor during Liverpool’s match against Manchester City at Anfield.

After Liverpool had snatched victory against Tottenham, Klopp told Sky Sports: “We have our history with Tierney, I really don’t know what he has against us, he has said there is no problem but that cannot be true.

“How he looks at me, I don’t understand it. My celebration was unnecessary, which is fair but what he said to me when he gave me the yellow card is not OK.”

When asked what Tierney had said, Klopp added: “I will not say anything about it. The refs don’t say what is said so I don’t say what is said.”

Klopp reignited his long-running feud with Tierney and referred back to last season’s 2-2 draw against Tottenham in London.

Klopp said: “Paul Tierney didn’t give Harry Kane a red card but Robbo (Andy Robertson) got a red card. It was not the first time, there are so many things.”

On his celebration in front of the fourth official, Klopp added: “Of course, we are emotional in these moments. It’s difficult. It is not OK, we shouldn’t do that. Yes, we are role models but we are human beings first and foremost.

“I didn’t say a bad word to the fourth official – not at all – but I pulled my hamstring probably in that moment so, fair enough, I’m already punished.

“A fair punishment for behaving not the right away. I have pain for a few days, Mr Tierney not.”

The Professional Game Match Officials Limited has refuted Jurgen Klopp’s claims that referee Paul Tierney acted improperly during Liverpool’s 4-3 win against Tottenham on Sunday.

Klopp was shown a yellow card by Tierney for his wild celebrations in front of fourth official John Brooks after Diogo Jota’s stoppage-time winner at Anfield, just 99 seconds after Richarlison had hauled Tottenham level in a seven-goal thriller.

The Liverpool manager pulled his hamstring in the process and in his post-match interview heavily criticised Tierney, accusing the match official of speaking to him in a manner which “was not OK”.

But PGMOL said in a statement: “PGMOL is aware of the comments made by Jurgen Klopp after his side’s fixture with Tottenham Hotspur.

“Match officials in the Premier League are recorded in all games via a communications system and having fully reviewed the audio of referee Paul Tierney from today’s fixture, we can confirm he acted in a professional manner throughout including when issuing the caution to the Liverpool manager so, therefore, we strongly refute any suggestion that Tierney’s actions were improper.”

Klopp faces heavy censure by the Football Association for his comments and touchline behaviour.

The German escaped a touchline ban in October and was instead fined £30,000 by an independent commission following his sending-off for confronting referee Anthony Taylor during Liverpool’s match against Manchester City at Anfield.

After Liverpool had snatched victory against Tottenham, Klopp told Sky Sports: “We have our history with Tierney, I really don’t know what he has against us, he has said there is no problem but that cannot be true.

“How he looks at me, I don’t understand it. My celebration was unnecessary, which is fair but what he said to me when he gave me the yellow card is not OK.”

When asked what Tierney had said, Klopp added: “I will not say anything about it. The refs don’t say what is said so I don’t say what is said.”

Klopp reignited his long-running feud with Tierney and referred back to last season’s 2-2 draw against Tottenham in London.

Klopp said: “Paul Tierney didn’t give Harry Kane a red card but Robbo (Andy Robertson) got a red card. It was not the first time, there are so many things.”

On his celebration in front of the fourth official, Klopp added: “Of course, we are emotional in these moments. It’s difficult. It is not OK, we shouldn’t do that. Yes, we are role models but we are human beings first and foremost.

“I didn’t say a bad word to the fourth official – not at all – but I pulled my hamstring probably in that moment so, fair enough, I’m already punished.

“A fair punishment for behaving not the right away. I have pain for a few days, Mr Tierney not.”

Jurgen Klopp slammed referee Paul Tierney after he made a series of contentious decisions in Liverpool's dramatic 4-3 win over Tottenham, saying: "I really don't know what this man has against us."

Having looked set for a routine win when they scored three times inside the first 15 minutes, Liverpool squandered their commanding lead before clinching a remarkable victory in stoppage time.

Diogo Jota latched onto Lucas Moura's mistake to fire home the winner, prompting an emotional Klopp to celebrate in front of the fourth official – an act that saw the Reds boss both injure his leg and receive a yellow card from Tierney. 

Klopp was angered by Tierney's decision to award a foul against Mohamed Salah in the build-up to Tottenham's equaliser, though his opposite number Ryan Mason felt Jota should earlier have been sent off for catching Oliver Skipp in the head with a high boot.

Recalling Tierney's failure to send off Tottenham talisman Harry Kane in a 2021 meeting between the sides, Klopp said the official has "history" with Liverpool.

"It was very emotional, of course, especially the situation before their third goal," Klopp told Sky Sports. "How they can give a foul on Salah up front? The linesman is directly there and keeps his flag down.

"We have our history with Tierney. I really don't know what this man has against us; he will always say there are no problems, but that cannot be true. I don't understand.

"How he looks at me, I don't understand it. I really have no problems with any people, and not with him either. He was the referee at Tottenham when Harry Kane didn't get the red card.

"In England, nobody has to clarify these situations, it's really tricky and difficult to understand. 

"My celebration towards the fourth official – I didn't say any bad words, but it was unnecessary. I got punished for that immediately, I pulled my hamstring or whatever, so fine, that's fair.

"But what he said to me when he gave me the yellow card is not okay."

Pushed on what Tierney allegedly told him, Klopp said: "It's not possible, I already said what I wanted to say."

When told of Mason's view on Jota's high challenge, Klopp said: "Ryan has to worry about other stuff. They're such a good football team, Tottenham, they have to play better football. 

"They can't just counter-attack. Diogo Jota has the foot high, but he's not going for the head.

"I heard Skipp could've had a red card. Did he speak about that as well? Wanting Diogo off the pitch... worry about other stuff."

The victory – Liverpool's fourth in as many Premier League games – lifts Klopp's men above Spurs into fifth, though they remain seven points adrift of Manchester United in fourth.

Asked if Liverpool could still make the top four, Klopp said: "Of course not. If United and Newcastle win all their games then how can we get there? 

"If they start losing them, we are close. Until then, we have to win football games to qualify for Europe at all."

Tottenham interim head coach Ryan Mason feels he deserves an explanation as to why Diogo Jota was still on the pitch to score an added-time winner for Liverpool after his head-high challenge on Oliver Skipp warranted only a yellow.

The Portugal international struck to secure a 4-3 victory just 99 seconds after Richarlison thought his first Premier League goal for the club had secured a late point having come back from 3-0 down.

However, Mason was incredulous that the substitute’s high boot, which cut Skipp’s head, did not warrant a red card.

“I would like an explanation and a reason why it wasn’t. I can understand referees on the pitch missing it,” he said.

“My feeling at the minute was an instant red card because when your foot is five-and-a-half foot off the ground and makes contact and there is a gash, it ticks all the boxes.

“We want the VAR to help the official on the pitch at that moment, but an experienced referee and VAR haven’t given it.

“A player that shouldn’t be on the pitch decided the game.

“I felt like we didn’t get that decision, it was a big decision, a crucial decision and one you can’t really miss.

“I find it hard and impossible to really understand why.”

Mason was doubly unhappy after seeing his side fight back from conceding goals to Curtis Jones, Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah (a penalty) inside the opening 15 minutes to draw level in the third minute of added time after Richarlison added to goals from Harry Kane and Son Heung-min.

“We come here and create so many chances,” he said. “On another day we win it with ease.”

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp was also unhappy with some of the officiating, so much so that he pulled a hamstring charging down the touchline to celebrate wildly in front of fourth official John Brooks.

Former referees chief Keith Hackett wrote on Twitter that Klopp’s behaviour was “unacceptable” and that “if we are to get improvement of the Technical area occupants then the law MUST be applied. Do not allow your authority to be eroded”.

Klopp’s issue was more with referee Paul Tierney, but his post-match comments about the official may get him into disciplinary trouble.

“We have our history with Tierney, I really don’t know what he has against us, he has said there is no problem but that cannot be true,” he told Sky Sports.

“How he looks at me, I don’t understand it. My celebration was unnecessary, which is fair but what he said to me when he gave me the yellow card is not OK.”

When asked what Tierney had said, Klopp added: “I will not say anything about it. The refs don’t say what is said so I don’t say what is said.”

However, he still went on to criticise Tierney and their history, referring to last season’s 2-2 draw in London.

Klopp said: “Paul Tierney didn’t give Harry Kane a red card but Robbo (Andy Robertson) got a red card. It was not the first time, there are so many things.”

On his celebration in front of the fourth official, Klopp added: “Of course, we are emotional in these moments. It’s difficult. It is not OK, we shouldn’t do that. Yes, we are role models but we are human beings first and foremost.

“I didn’t say a bad word to the fourth official – not at all – but I pulled my hamstring probably in that moment so, fair enough, I’m already punished.

“A fair punishment for behaving not the right away. I have pain for a few days, Mr Tierney not.”

Jurgen Klopp says Liverpool will "take what we get" at the end of the season as they eye a fourth Premier League win in a row against Tottenham on Sunday.

The Reds are in seventh place after continuing their recent resurgence with a 2-1 victory at West Ham on Tuesday.

Liverpool are seven points behind fourth-placed Manchester United and will move above Spurs if they beat them at Anfield this weekend.

Reds manager Klopp expects his players to throw everything into a late-season push for a place in either the Champions League or Europa League.

He said: "We will take what we get. We didn't start the season saying it will be fantastic, but the season taught us a few things. If it is Europa League, it is Europa League.

"We want to create a basis to qualify for the best possible scenario. Squeeze everything out."

Klopp has been encouraged by the Reds' return to form but is demanding more.

The German said: "It's too early to speak about consistency winning three in a row. I am happy with the performances at the moment as I saw a lot of things we want to see in games, and that's really pleasing for the coach.

"I know from the outside results are everything, but performances levels are what you are looking for. We want to focus on us, but we cannot ignore the quality of the opponent.

"There is always something to improve on. I am absolutely okay with us at the moment, but we have to stay focused and show the most important prize in football is three points."

Centre-back Ibrahima Konate is available to return from injury when Spurs travel to Merseyside on the back of fighting back from two goals down to draw 2-2 with Manchester United on Thursday.

Tottenham were hammered 6-1 at Newcastle United last weekend, resulting in interim boss Cristian Stellini being sacked and Ryan Mason taking charge until the end of the season.

Klopp is wary of the threat posed by the London club despite the fact they have endured a turbulent time.

He added: "This is a season where a lot of things are difficult for a lot of teams. We have our problems, Chelsea have problems, Tottenham have problems. It is not cool for us but opens it up for other teams and Champions League spots are there to grab for other teams.

"Little mistakes can cause massive problems. I don't know anything about that for Tottenham, but they showed they are outstanding last night. I will be prepared for the best possible Tottenham side. They have been the best counter-attacking side in Europe by some distance."

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp insists it is too early to declare his side are “out of the woods” in terms of eradicating the inconsistencies which have blighted their season.

The midweek victory over West Ham made it three wins in succession, extended their unbeaten run to five matches, and maintained their outside chance of sneaking into the top four.

On Sunday at home to Tottenham, Liverpool have a chance to win a fourth league game in a row for only the second time this season – that came in November and December and was separated by the World Cup – but Klopp said it would be wrong to assume everything had now clicked back into place.

“It is, for me too early to speak about consistency,” he said.

“Winning three games is not for me consistent, it is good but can only be the start of something.

“It is about consistency you show in performances even more than results. For the outside world it is the result but for us it must be performances because that is what we work with.

“I am happy with that in the moment because in all the games, as different as they were, I saw a lot of things we want to see in the games and that is then really good.

“There is always something to improve and that’s fine that’s what we try to do as well.

“I am absolutely OK with the moment but it is not that I already trust ourselves that much to say ‘That’s it now, we are out of the woods’ because this season gave us a few lessons I didn’t want to learn, but learned.

“We have to be super-aggressive, super-greedy and show that the most important prize in football is the three points at the weekend and that’s all we have to be focused on.”

Consistency has certainly returned to Klopp’s team selection as he has made just one change over the course of the last four matches and that was the precautionary resting of Ibrahima Konate for Wednesday’s victory over the Hammers.

Coincidentally it was his replacement at centre-back Joel Matip who scored the winner but Konate is likely to return at Anfield on Sunday.

But Klopp acknowledges having a stable team has led to better baseline performances.

“We didn’t change because we won the game before, we didn’t change because we set the team up slightly differently and wanted to give the boys the chance to find some rhythm and get used to different things,” he added.

“Number two is I said the ticket into this team will always be the readiness to defend and to counter-press and I like a lot of that what I saw.

“And if you say that you have to give the credit for it as well, so you can buy the ticket again.

“What it created was a situation in training where the boys who didn’t start showed properly up so we could have changed quite a lot because they really knock on the door.

“The difference is we had time to train. When you have time to train they can show up because in a normal week with three games you have recovery and the only guys who train are the ones who didn’t play the game before and the next day is second-day recovery for the guys who played.”

Jurgen Klopp wants Liverpool to continue to "show our real face" after they secured a third win in a row to move up to sixth in the Premier League.

Liverpool came from behind to beat West Ham 2-1 at London Stadium on Wednesday thanks to goals from Cody Gakpo and Joel Matip, cancelling out Lucas Paqueta's early opener.

West Ham boss David Moyes was left infuriated after a handball appeal against Thiago Alcantara in the penalty area late on was waved away by referee Chris Kavanagh, as well as by the VAR.

"I liked the performance a lot," Klopp said at his post-match press conference. "First half, I think we were exceptional. Controlled the game from the beginning pretty much, made one mistake and bam – 1-0 down. Great goal, I have to say – what a screamer – but [we] stayed calm, kept playing, scored our screamer as well and controlled the game.

"Second half I liked as well. We had to really dig in deep then because of the physicality of West Ham, they always have a chance to come back as long as you don't kill the game – and we didn't. [We] had massive chances after set-pieces, I have no clue how we didn't take them – I didn't understand it but then [we] scored a wonderful goal from a set-piece.

"I heard now about the handball [but] we were on the other side of that. I thought he just fell on the ball but I can understand Moysey sees that probably completely different.

"In the end, if you look at the game, I think we are the deserved winner and that's, for me, very important. If we got a point, I'm still happy with the game, not with the result – [but] now I'm happy with both."

The win took Liverpool within six points of the top four, albeit having played two more games than fourth-placed Manchester United and one more than Newcastle United in third.

On the race for the Champions League spots, Klopp said: "I can't see the race yet, because we are not in position for a race. The only thing we can do is win football games, if that puts pressure on other teams that's not in our hands because we don't play them [United and Newcastle].

"I want us to finish the season as good as somehow possible. I want us to take something out of this season for next year, if that is European competition, great, if not, we have to accept it as well and go from there.

"I want us, at least for a few weeks, [to] show our real face – and not the nice one, the ugly one, the nice one, the ugly one. It's really tough to do that. So now we did it for kind of three games – three and a half, the second half against Arsenal was brilliant as well.

"We played here plenty of times, it's always tough. Result-wise, it looked better from time to time but the goals we scored were then counter-attacks, stuff like that, quick reacting, all these kind of things. Tonight we controlled the game in a way we never did before against West Ham and I really liked that."

Klopp had earlier told BT Sport how pleased he was again with Trent Alexander-Arnold's performance in his new hybrid role between right-back and midfield, with the 24-year-old claiming an assist for Gakpo's goal, and making more passes in the opposition half than anyone else on the pitch (62).

The Liverpool manager refused to entertain the idea that Alexander-Arnold's new role had led to West Ham's chances down their right side, and replied to a question about one specific chance that ended with Virgil van Dijk narrowly denying Michail Antonio in the first half: "That had nothing to do with the role of Trent.

"We had three players on the other side in a challenge, so we just don't win the ball. That means we move to the ball side, that is a risk you take, you should win the ball then.

"Three v one we don't win the ball, then the other side is open... it has nothing to do with Trent Alexander-Arnold."

What the papers say

Liverpool are hoping to sign Manchester City “outcast” Kalvin Phillips in a £35m deal this summer, the Daily Star says. Jurgen Klopp targeted the 27-year-old midfielder after being priced out of a move for Jude Bellingham.

Elsewhere, the Daily Telegraph reports Romelu Lukaku will be asked whether or not he wants to try to revive his Chelsea career under proposed permanent head coach Mauricio Pochettino. The 29-year-old striker has spent the season on loan at Inter Milan after making it clear that he no longer wanted to play for former head coach Thomas Tuchel.

In more Blues news, the Evening Standard says Frank Lampard will make himself available as a sounding board for Pochettino to help ensure a smooth transition. The former Tottenham manager is due to take over at the end of the season.

And according to The Sun, Eddie Howe will have up to £150million to bolster his Newcastle squad this summer. The Magpies are laying plans to prepare their squad for a Champions League campaign next season and are willing to spend between £100-150million.

Social media round-up

Top four = big spending for Howe this summer. And he has targets ? ? https://t.co/vjUB6mcTgt

— Mirror Football (@MirrorFootball) April 26, 2023

Lampard on Mount: “New deal for him? Not my opinion. It will be the opinion of the club and the opinion of Mason, so that's between them”. ?⭐️ #CFC

“There’s no doubt, he’s top-class player. Trust me, it’s not easy to play with top players around and he’s managed to do that”. pic.twitter.com/oczA2DJdny

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) April 25, 2023

Players to watch

Lionel Messi: 90min says Barcelona are “leaving no stone unturned” in their bid to re-sign the 35-year-old Argentina forward from Paris St-Germain but a deal will not be straightforward.

Andre Onana: Italian outlet Gazzetta dello Sport reports Chelsea are interested in signing the 27-year-old Cameroon goalkeeper from Inter Milan and could use Kepa Arrizabalaga, 28, as part of the deal.