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06th Apr 2017

Jamie Carragher predicts when Liverpool can expect to win the Premier League

Don't hold your breath

Darragh Murphy

Don’t get too excited, Reds fans.

Liverpool’s 27-year wait for a top-flight title looks almost certain to continue as the business end of the season approaches.

Jurgen Klopp’s side currently sit 12 points behind leaders Chelsea and Antonio Conte has one hand on the Premier League trophy, meaning that Liverpool will have to continue playing the waiting game.

Optimistic fans always begin each season with the ‘this is our year’ mentality but that typically gets whittled away once a rough patch of form hits.

Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher doesn’t tend to get carried away with predictions of success for his former club but he’s come up with a rough timeline for when Reds fans can expect to experience Premier League glory.

“I think Liverpool have got the sixth-best squad in the league so to be in the top four would be a very good season,” he told FourFourTwo.

“At the moment I don’t think they’ve got enough to challenge for the league. You saw the reasons why they fell away in the middle of the season – they didn’t have reinforcements, especially when Sadio Mane was gone for the Africa Cup of Nations.

“It’s very difficult. They don’t have the revenue to compete with the others, it will be a building process. It won’t be a case of splashing the cash and going for the league next season.

“I think it will have to be a gradual improvement similar to when I was playing under (Gerard) Houllier and (Rafa) Benitez when we built to a title challenge. We never quite pulled it off, but we came very close on a couple of occasions.

“If Liverpool can get into the top four for three or four years on the bounce, then that would be a major achievement. You cement your position in there and then maybe think ‘okay, let’s go for the title’.

“Klopp has signed a contract for five or six years and I’m sure each year he’d be looking for progression, so maybe after another good two or three years Liverpool should have a great chance.”