'No, we're not ahead of schedule'
John Achterberg claims Liverpool are not ahead of schedule in the Barclays Premier League so far this season, insisting they were always confident of making a good start.
Brendan Rodgers' side currently sit second in the top flight and just two points off the summit after an excellent opening to the campaign.
Achterberg believes there is still a lot of hard work to be done, however, to ensure the Reds remain in the hunt for the top places for the rest of 2013-14.
"I don't think we are ahead of schedule because we want to win every game," the goalkeeping coach told Liverpoolfc.com.
"If we won a few more we could have been on top but we just have to be focused and ready every time a game is coming up, and use the same attitude and focus to win every game."
Last Saturday's impressive 4-0 win over Fulham was the first time in seven games that Liverpool had kept a clean sheet.
After keeping three top-flight shut-outs in a row at the start of the season, the Dutchman explained why he was happy to see the Reds record another clean sheet.
Achterberg added: "It's always important to get a clean sheet because if you have a clean sheet there's always a good chance you'll get a good result.
"Unfortunately we hadn't had a clean sheet for a few weeks but at least we got one again and hopefully we can have a few more in the coming weeks.
"We always work on tactical things, defensive and attacking play, but every time we play we want to keep a clean sheet. Sometimes that happens and sometimes it doesn't. Hopefully it will come much more often now."
The return of Philippe Coutinho, coupled with the attacking qualities of Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge, has made the Liverpool front-line a real menace for defenders and goalkeepers across the country.
Achterberg revealed that, as a player, he relished playing against world-class talents as it helped him raise his game to a good level.
So how would he fancy facing the Reds' current attacking force?
He said: "I think for every player it's great to play against top players, so you just try to be focused on your job and if you are on your front foot you try and do the same things.
"If a top player scores a good goal past you, then you just need to keep your head up.
"But most players will struggle against those players, as we are seeing week in, week out."