Rush: "People are saying all the fans are getting excited, but why not? Why shouldn't they be excited? If they don't get excited now, they'll never get excited!"
Tuesday 23 April 2019 09:12, UK
Jurgen Klopp has given Liverpool an unshakeable belief that they can bring the Premier League title to Anfield, says club legend Ian Rush.
Liverpool's 2-0 victory at Cardiff extended their winning run to six matches, returning Klopp's side to the top of the table with just three league games left.
Manchester City are still in control of their destiny, knowing if they win their four remaining matches - starting with Wednesday's Manchester derby - they will retain the Premier League.
"The title race will go down to the wire, there is no doubt about that," Rush told Sky Sports News.
"There are just a few games to go and as long as they keep winning they are one step closer, but I think they are starting to believe now that it can be done.
"People are saying all the fans are getting excited, but why not? Why shouldn't they be excited? If they don't get excited now, they'll never get excited!
"The most important thing is that the players - with the help of the coaching staff and the manager - keep their feet on the ground.
"I think the team is a bit more resistant now and you can see that in the way they've come back from a goal down to win a game quite a few times this season
"They've got a winning formula and there is no need to change anything."
Former European Footballer of the Year Rush won five League titles with Liverpool, and the club's all-time leading goalscorer can see similarities between the current squad and the legendary Liverpool teams that he was part of.
"When I played, I would 100 per cent say the main reason we were so successful was because of our team spirit," added Rush, who has just returned from a trip to Pakistan on behalf of the Ian Rush Foundation.
"In the dressing room, we had the banter and the laughing and the joking, but when we went onto the pitch we were serious, and the success we had was down to team spirit.
"Individuals can win you a game but only a team can win the league and I can see a bit of that in Jurgen Klopp and his team now."
Klopp arrived at Liverpool in October 2015 and has since guided them to League Cup, Europa League and Champions League finals - and their current points tally of 88 is the highest Liverpool have ever recorded in the Premier League.
Rush believes the progress the German has made at the club is clear for all to see, insisting Liverpool's players look re-energised and feel loved by their inspirational manager.
He added: "I've been to training sessions and I've seen Liverpool players laughing and joking between things but when they're working, they work.
"And when they have a break, they are talking to each other, they are enjoying being with each other, they put their arms around each other and that comes from the manager.
"Every time Klopp sees you he gives you a big hug and the first thing you do is you want to give someone else a hug after!
"It's that positive energy that he is putting through and that's probably the difference with Liverpool now."
