JAMES MILNER reckons Liverpool fans “trust” this squad to end their 30-year wait for the title.
After losing out to Manchester City by a point last season, Jurgen Klopp’s side are in no mood to let it slip again.
Milner (centre) helped seal a huge Boxing Day win at LeicesterCredit: EPA
And while no one at Anfield will say it, the hard work has been done in opening up a gap at the top that looks almost too much to claw back.
Midfielder Milner will be 34 next Saturday — and by then he will hope Liverpool have gone a year without losing a league game.
Those milestones mean that Kop supporters can more than sense this is the year for them.
Milner said: “The expectation is there but I think that’s shifted.
“That’s why we want to play for Liverpool — because it’s a massive club and that expectation is there.
“But you feel more of a trust around Anfield now within the team and you can feel it from the stands.
“We know how badly they want it. We want it bad and they want it more with the wait they’ve had and how close we’ve come before.
“But we feel like they are completely with us and there’s a trust in the squad, which is maybe different to seasons before.
“It’s hard to pin it down to one spot where it started. I just think you can feel it now. If the goal hasn’t come, you sense they believe in us.
“That’s credit to them but to the boys as well. We’re in this together but the faith they have shown us is brilliant.
“We’ll do it together. It’s quite incredible and hopefully we can repay them at the end of the season.”
One reason for Liverpool’s success is the wealth of talent coming through. Trent Alexander-Arnold’s sensational display against Leicester on Boxing Day sets him apart.
And Milner insists the 21-year-old is on his way to becoming world class.
He said: “One hundred per cent. There’s a long way to go and we don’t want him to get a big head.
“But he won’t because there’s plenty of people around him in this dressing room. If he does, they’ll pop it straight away.
“For me, one of the most impressive things about him is his mentality.
“You can admire him ability-wise but his mentality is great. He’s got a great attitude.
His mentality is absolutely spot on and his ability is incredible. He’ll keep on improving and be a massive player for Liverpool for many years to come.
Milner On TAA
“That’s so important. He’ll keep improving and if he keeps doing what he’s doing now for the foreseeable future, given how young he is, he’ll have people talking about him for a long, long time.
“He can be very good. He’s pretty good now, isn’t he?
“When you see the amount of games he’s played, occasions he’s played — Champions League finals, big games, pushing-for-the-league- title games — it’s just massive experience playing alongside these guys.
“There is a lot more to come.”
However, Milner warned that Alexander-Arnold will not have it all his own way.
He added: “He’s going to make mistakes and will have to bounce back from them.
“You get disappointments. The manager’s taken him out of the team at times but he always shows the right attitude and he knows it’s for his benefit or the benefit of the team.
“His mentality is absolutely spot on and his ability is incredible. He’ll keep on improving and be a massive player for Liverpool for many years to come.”
Milner accepts that, as the oldest player in the dressing room, his task is to keep the team grounded until the title is won.
He added: “That’s our job to keep the lads on the straight and narrow.
“You try and help the lads when you can. Obviously, I’m not playing every game now but when you’re not playing it’s all about how to help the team and the dressing room.
“I’ll help as much as I can and that’s another strength of the team — there’s plenty of leaders in the dressing room and we’re pushing each other all the time.”
Jurgen Klopp jokes with Gabby Logan about questions on Liverpool already winning the league
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
