Liverpool goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher has told his team-mates they cannot afford to ease off after opening up a gap at the top of the Premier League.

The Reds know that, regardless of their result at Southampton on Sunday, they will end the weekend at the top of the standings after a superb start from new manager Arne Slot, who has still only tasted defeat once since taking over in the summer.

A game against a Saints side bottom of the table with only one league win to their name this term is clearly one Liverpool should be winning, but bigger challenges await in the coming days with Real Madrid due at Anfield in the Champions League on Wednesday before Manchester City visit next weekend.

“After this last international break it’s quite intense now obviously with us playing every three days pretty much,” Kelleher said on the club’s website.

“We’re not going to take anything for granted. I know maybe the outside is already making some noise about us being so far ahead in the league now, but we don’t really think about that.

“We know we can’t take our foot off the gas for one second because we’ll get punished. Our focus is on Southampton first and then trying to get some wins.”

Kelleher, who is set to keep his place in goal in the continued absence of Alisson Becker, echoed the views of Slot in saying that Southampton are better than their results have suggested.

“We as players and the staff as well know, we’re not silly,” he said.

“We know how good they are and the quality that these players have. I think sometimes the results don’t reflect the quality that’s in the actual team.

“You need to take every team in this league very seriously or else you’ll end up not getting good results.

“We’re going to prepare as if we’re playing a Man City or a Chelsea or an Arsenal. For teams like that we’re going to prepare the exact same and give it our all.”

Kelleher, who turned 26 on Saturday, has been at Liverpool for almost a decade.

Although he does not have a medal from their Premier League-winning season in 2019/20, having not made a league appearance that term, Kelleher recognises the hunger and desire from that campaign in the current squad.

“There’s obviously I think a big hunger in us to win more trophies and really compete at the highest level,” he said.

“A lot of that squad has departed now so there’s not too many of the squad in there who have tasted Premier League or Champions League success.

“There’s a lot of hunger in this new squad to achieve those kind of things. We know we have the quality, but we need to go out and show it. Definitely there is a lot of hunger throughout the whole squad.”