Jurgen Klopp: Liverpool Have a 'Pure Opportunity' to Win the Premier League

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has said his team have a "pure opportunity" to capture the Premier League trophy this season.

The Reds host Watford on Wednesday, with the Anfield giants holding a one-point advantage over Manchester City at the top of the table.

Liverpool wasted a chance to pull clear at the summit after a draw at Manchester United on Sunday, but Klopp's men have a favourable set of fixtures in the weeks ahead.

According to the club's official website, Klopp told his pre-match press conference his players must be confident and prepared to play their best football during the title run-in:

"We are not that experienced in winning the league. [But] it’s so positive, so positive. If you only judge the moment and see the opportunity then everything is fine. But if you always look one, two or three weeks back, where we dropped points, where we conceded goals, thinking ‘we have to win that’ not ‘we can win that’, that makes life a little bit more uncomfortable, that’s the truth. Usually in a situation where you can be champions for the first time in your life – for a lot of our supporters it would be the first time in their life, and for a lot of my players as well – it’s pure opportunity and you have to use it on the front foot, with all the things you have to always do in football."

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The goalless draw at Old Trafford was a fair result, but further points were dropped recently against West Ham United and Leicester City.

The Reds had won eight straight matches in all competitions from the start of December but have only won three of their last nine during a troublesome spell.

Manchester City have tightened their defence since a shock 2-1 defeat at Newcastle United in January, and the champions appear ready to contest for the title until the final hurdle.

Liverpool's back line remains the bedrock of their challenge, but Watford will ask questions of Klopp's side after losing just once in their last 11 in the Premier League and FA Cup.

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The Hornets are an impressive seventh in the standings this season. They have given excellent accounts of themselves against the biggest teams in England.

Liverpool's squad must now replicate the confidence of their coach. Everton, Burnley and Fulham are their next three opponents in the league after Wednesday's encounter, and the leaders need to win each match to keep City at arm's length in the title race.