Former Liverpool midfielder Didi Hamann has admitted that he was "very surprised" by the Reds' excellent start to the season, but he now believes that Jurgen Klopp's side are capable of winning the Premier League title.
On the back of a challenging 2022-23 season in which the Reds finished outside the top four for the first time since the 2015-16 campaign, Klopp and the Liverpool hierarchy oversaw a major reshuffle of an ageing midfield setup.
All of Jordan Henderson, Naby Keita, James Milner, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Fabinho departed to make room for new blood in the shape of Wataru Endo, Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch and Dominik Szoboszlai, while Roberto Firmino's glittering Anfield spell also came to an end in the summer.
Despite entering the 2023-24 campaign with an unfamiliar set of midfield options - barring the improving Curtis Jones - the Premier League title is now Liverpool's to lose as they sit atop the standings with 45 points from their opening 20 matches.
The Reds have a three-point lead over Aston Villa and are five points better off than Manchester City - who have a game in hand - while they are also fighting for success in the Europa League, FA Cup and EFL Cup, topping their continental group and reaching the semi-finals of the latter tournament.
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Speaking to Sports Mole with King Casino Bonus, Hamann - who made 283 appearances and won nine major honours for Liverpool between 1999 and 2006 - conceded that he did not expect his former team to be challenging for silverware this season, but he now sees no reason why Klopp's side cannot clinch Premier League title number two.
When asked if Liverpool's exploits in the first half of the season had surprised him, the 50-year-old said: "Very much so. I didn't see them competing for the honours or maybe even for the Premier League, but they surprised me.
"They managed to settle in Szoboszlai, Mac Allister, Endo very quickly, and Gravenberch as well. Midfield is a very important part of the team and they've done a brilliant job. The defence is playing really well, and in the forwards you've got players who can score goals. I'm very surprised and I think they can go all the way now."
Key to Liverpool's blistering start to the campaign has been the irrepressible Mohamed Salah, whose brace and assist in Monday's 4-2 win over Newcastle United took him up to a staggering 18 goals and nine assists in 27 games across all competitions this season.
The 31-year-old now sits fifth in Liverpool's all-time scoring charts with 204 strikes to his name - 151 of which have come in the Premier League - but the Reds will have to cope without their star winger for a number of weeks while he represents Egypt at the Africa Cup of Nations.
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In addition, summer arrival Endo - who has blossomed in the number six role during Mac Allister's absence with a knee injury - is away on Asian Cup duty with Japan, and both players could miss up to seven games for Liverpool between now and the middle of February.
While Hamann believes that Salah is irreplaceable, he is confident that the Reds have enough strength in depth to maintain their strong form in the absence of the attacker and Endo, whom he thinks is still guilty of being caught in possession too often.
"Salah is the talisman, he scores goals, the way he set up the goals against Newcastle were just world-class. He will be very hard to replace. This is a chance for Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz to show what they can bring to the table," the German added.
"Endo had a rough start to his Liverpool career, but he's done well in recent weeks. Sometimes he gets caught in possession too often for my liking, but he showed what a player he is. Salah is obviously the bigger miss, but I think they've got enough players who can step up. Can they replace him? No, but I think they have enough players."
Before resuming their quest for Premier League glory, Liverpool will begin their bid for FA Cup stardom on Sunday, when they meet Arsenal in a blockbuster third-round clash at the Emirates.
Ben Knapton
