Gary McAllister has backed Liverpool to recover from a disappointing 2014-15 campaign and return to the Barclays Premier League top four next season.

The Reds slipped out of the Champions League places last term and were consigned to a sixth-placed finish by defeat at Stoke on the final day.

However, having seen Brendan Rodgers' team fall just short of winning the title 12 months earlier, McAllister knows how quickly things can change in football.

The Scot expects his former club to prove that again by returning to Europe's top table next time around.

"[Other teams] will strengthen so that puts the pressure on Brendan to get back in there," he said.

"But you go back two seasons and Liverpool were inches away from actually being champions.

"So with the right additions I think Liverpool can get into that top four."

Watch the video here »

Liverpool have already begun to strengthen their squad ahead of the new campaign, with the signings of James Milner, Danny Ings and Adam Bogdan on free transfers confirmed, subject to medicals.

On Milner, McAllister said: "He's obviously a very experienced player.

"I think it's a very good signing. James Milner is the type of player most clubs in the top half of the table, the teams that have qualified for the Champions League, would all be delighted to get James Milner on their books. 

"He's a quality player, he can play in three or four different positions and he's a very, very experienced international footballer."

McAllister was something of a surprise signing for Liverpool when he moved to Anfield from Coventry City at the age of 35.

But the midfielder's nous proved vital as Gerard Houllier's side went on to win a remarkable FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup treble in 2000-01.

And he believes Milner's experience can be just as beneficial to Rodgers' young squad.

"There is good experience within the Liverpool team but adding someone like Milner, who has played at World Cups, played at European Championships, he'll be able to go and cope with the atmosphere at Anfield," he added.

"I'm sure he'll enjoy it. He's a Leeds boy and I think Anfield is a place he's really going to enjoy. 

"He's had the pressure of playing at Manchester City when they've been expected to win championships with the money that they've spent. 

"But the history and tradition at Liverpool makes it just a little bit different. 

"There is that expectancy but there's also an emphasis on doing it with a bit of style or a bit of cleverness, and I think that something that James can bring."

Former Scotland star McAllister also expects Ings to make a positive impact at Anfield in his second season in the top flight.

"He's a good signing," he of the striker, who will represent England at the European U21 Championship this summer.

"He's a guy who has proven himself in the Championship, he's come up with Burnley and scored goals in a struggling side who were relegated and proved he can cope in the Premier League. 

"This is just the next step for Danny. He's pushing himself into the England reckoning and if he can deliver for Liverpool I think England have got another quality striker."