Kenny Dalglish believes the race for a top four spot is as competitive as ever as Liverpool prepare to host league leaders Manchester City on Sunday afternoon.

The Reds currently lie sixth, level on points with both Chelsea and Arsenal, and just three adrift of third-placed Tottenham.

Dalglish insists he has been unsurprised by the majority of the contenders for a Champions League berth and is delighted that his team are firmly in the mix.

Dalglish told his pre-match press conference: "Apart from the positions of the teams, I don't think there is much of a surprise. It is only Newcastle that you would have said, which has been a pleasant surprise for the Geordies. They will be delighted they are up there in the hunt for it."

He continued: "It's good to see us up there, that's most important thing for us. I don't care how many are involved. If we were sitting there out of sight, it would be even better for us. As long as we are involved that is all that we are concerned with. Whatever any other club is going to do, we can't do anything about it until we play them."

The Reds entertain leaders Manchester City on Sunday hoping to build on their impressive record against the Barclays Premier League's top sides.

Dalglish's men ran out 3-0 victors when the two teams met at the end of last season but the boss is expecting a different challenge on this occasion.

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He said: "They have fantastic resources to go and get who and what they want to buy. They've had a fantastic start to the league season this year. I don't think there will be any surprises.

"I think there will be changes from the team they played the other night (Champions League). We know what to expect and we'll give them all due respect. We'll make sure we are right, that's the important thing.

"Their style may have changed but their principles haven't. Maybe bringing in certain individuals has altered it a little bit. Certainly their position in the league has changed and they've had some fantastic performances."

He continued: "We won't sit here and disclose what our thoughts are on the Man City game in detail. What was apparent in the game last season was that Tevez came off after 20 minutes with a pulled hamstring. That helped us a bit more than it did them, I think. But we played well and got our rewards.

"They've got different personnel now and so have we, so it might not be the same type of game this time around.

"We'll decide what's best for us and let them worry about us more than we will worry about them. At the same time we respect and appreciate how good they are.

"Not much has changed in them really. Obviously their results are better and the way they have gone about their games has been fantastic. When they have got their noses in front they have gone on and punished teams. They played fantastic at Tottenham and at Old Trafford, so maybe they are due a bad one - let's keep our fingers crossed."

Last season Andy Carroll got off the mark for Liverpool with a sensational double at the expense of Roberto Mancini's outfit.

Asked if that would have any bearing on whether the big No.9 would feature on Sunday, Dalglish said: "You take into account first and foremost what is happening at this moment and take it from there.

"Andy scored two great goals against them last year. We got our reward for that and so did Andy. That's not to say that because he scored two last year, he'll score two this year.

"We'll all start afresh for the game on Sunday. If we can repeat the same result as last year, everyone will be happy."

He added: "I went on record as saying his (Andy's) best games for us were against Stoke and West Brom. That tells you how he is doing."

Reporters also suggested that the Reds could use the clash with the runaway leaders as a barometer for their progress this term.

"We don't need one game to give us an incentive to bite on and look forward to the future," replied Dalglish.

"We will look a lot further than that. We won't get carried away by one game whether we win it or lose it. We are just looking to progress and build something here that will last for a long time.

"I think we are moving in the right direction. Whether Sunday is a positive result for us or not, it won't be a determining factor in the progress of the football club."

The match with City will also see Luis Suarez go head-to-head with Sergio Aguero in a battle between two South American stars currently setting the Barclays Premier League alight.

Asked to compare the two, Dalglish said: "I've not seen a lot of Aguero. He's done well there and scored a few goals. For us, we are delighted to have Luis."