Friday 6 January 2017 18:05, UK
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp insists they have only set the base for their season and can still improve as they chase the Premier League title.
Top-of-the-table Chelsea saw their lead over second-placed Liverpool cut to five points with defeat Tottenham, who are third and only two points behind Klopp's men.
After 20 games 44 points is still good, but it's only the base for the rest of the season. We have to keep on going.
The German insists Chelsea's defeat, which ended a winning run of 13 games, changes nothing in their thinking and wants them to react to the 2-2 draw at Sunderland with victory in the next game.
He said: "When we came together in June and talked about the season, the ideas we had, the plan we had, the dreams we had, we thought we could have a good season.
"When you finish the first half of the season with 43 points, I have no time to think about it, to celebrate, before the next game.
"After 20 games 44 points, the second best in the league, is still good. That's absolutely okay, more than okay, but it's only the base for the rest of the season. We have to keep on going.
"It makes no sense to look at the other teams because we have no influence on the games. That's still the case after the Chelsea game.
"The Sunderland game for all of us was strange. It was my first experience of this. I had no idea what to expect. I couldn't judge the game properly.
"At the end we were all pretty much frustrated because we thought that a game like this, when you win it 2-1, doesn't make the game better, but it's the perfect thing.
"I don't think you can expect the best performance in a game like this. Sunderland did really well but didn't create a lot of chances.
"The game is over, you have one point and it felt like defeat. It's over, long ago."
