Jürgen Klopp has explained why the whole Liverpool squad should be credited for setting a new defensive record in club history.

The clean sheet secured at Watford last Saturday means the Reds have conceded only five goals in their opening 13 Premier League games of the season, which they have also navigated without defeat.

Never before has an LFC team been so miserly at this point in a campaign.

And while Alisson Becker, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joe Gomez, Virgil van Dijk and Andy Robertson are the players most consistently selected in the back five so far, the players pushing them in training have not gone unnoticed.

And, in fact, Klopp believes that is true throughout the positions in his side.

“It’s incredible what they do. And it’s so important. That’s the only way it works out,” he told Liverpoolfc.com.

“You need the squad, you need the options and you need the different alternatives. It’s absolutely great.

“It’s not only [in defence], it’s in midfield as well; Naby [Keita] was injured and is coming back now, Fabinho had games, but we could rotate a little bit – that’s good for us. Up front, Daniel [Sturridge] trains on a really high level, Dom [Solanke] and Div [Origi] train on a really high level. That all helps us to stay on track.

“The situation in the table helps us, of course, as well. We want to stay as close as possible to City. We have to collect points from the other teams.

“It’s a tough life as a professional football player in the middle of the season but if you don’t play in the moment, actually there are worse things in the world.

“We treat all the players in the same way. It’s not that we have categories. It’s really important to realise that’s part of the job. You sign that situation in the moment when you sign the contract actually – because you know you have to do your best to be in the first XI and if you do your best there’s no guarantee you are in the first XI. That’s actually the situation.

“I cannot moan about a player where I say: ‘That’s just not enough.’ They see the quality of the squad we have and they know the job to do to keep the desire up and keep the motivation up. And in a specific moment if you are needed, you need to be ready.”