Didi Hamann says it would have been difficult for Jurgen Klopp to pick Liverpool up after how their season ended last term.
But the former Reds midfielder was impressed by the manner of their 5-0 hammering of RB Leipzig on Thursday night given the Bundesliga side are further along in their pre-season schedule.
The Reds headed into the final week of the campaign in contention for an unprecedented quadruple in late May but lost out on the Premier League title to Manchester City by a single point before defeat in the Champions League final to Real Madrid curtailed a 63-game term on a low note.
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After selecting as many as six different teams across their two games in Thailand and Singapore, where they met Manchester United and Crystal Palace, respectively, Klopp named a strong lineup for Thursday's win over Leipzig in Saxony as preparations for the new year were stepped up significantly.
Mohamed Salah gave the Reds an early lead before Darwin Nunez came off the bench to net four times in an impressive summer victory over Domenico Tedesco's side.
Hamann feels it would have been hard to have raised morale after that 1-0 loss to Real Madrid in the European Cup final on May 28 but says he has been enthused by what he has seen so far, particularly in the victory in Leipzig.
"I felt psychologically it'd be hard to pick the lads up because with a week to go of the season you had the chance to win all four titles, which in itself is an amazing achievement, and unfortunately they fell short," Hamann told the ECHO.
"The defeat in the Champions League final will hurt because, well, I don't want to say Real Madrid were there for the taking, but they just couldn't break them down. So far it's going well, but you just have to wait until the season starts.
"I am a bit surprised, I have to say, that they have started so well because Leipzig have the German Charity Shield here next week, the Super Cup, and they are bit further along in their preparation for the season, so to go and wipe the floor with them 5-0 was a bit of a statement."
Klopp is attempting to adjust to something of a new-look strike force without Sadio Mane, who joined Bayern Munich last month in a deal that could rise to over £40m.
In the Senegal star's place came Darwin Nunez, who arrived from Benfica for an initial £64m, while January signing Luis Diaz is getting set for his first full campaign in the Premier League this coming term.
Hamann says it will be tough to replicate what was produced by Liverpool's regular front three in recent years of Mane, Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino, but says the early signs are promising for the Reds boss.
Hamann, a 2005 Champions League winner with the Reds, added: "They have got some brilliant players but it will be interesting to see how it works out with Nunez because the reason they were so successful was because they had three of the best forwards in Salah, Mane and Firmino. They complemented each other which is not always the case.
"Obviously they want to score goals and they want the headlines but they put their own interests to the back to play for the team, which is not always the case. In Nunez now we've got to wait to see how the dynamics of the team changes, but so far I have to say, it looks pretty good."
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