Pep Guardiola has insisted he has more belief in Liverpool's title credentials than Jurgen Klopp.
It is no secret the Reds have endured a slow start to the season, highlighted by their current league position of seventh, but there have been signs of improvement both domestically and in Europe.
A 7-1 thumping of Rangers kick-started a change in fortunes for Liverpool, who have backed up this scintillating showing in Scotland by achieving wins over Manchester City and West Ham United.
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Klopp's men still have some way to go to close the gap on league leaders Arsenal, which currently stands at 11 points, but anyone would be foolish to write this Liverpool team off - something Guardiola is fully aware of following last Sunday's showdown at Anfield.
The Liverpool boss may have played down chances of challenging at the top this term, but City's Catalan coach sees a different reality.
“It looks like with my statement I believe more in the Liverpool team than their manager,” said Guardiola. “It’s just 10 fixtures gone, the World Cup in the middle and a lot of games to play, Europe involved and cup competitions involved, injuries involved. I said before, when we have six or seven games left, yes. When it is just 10 games, one thousand million things can happen.”
It was only last season City sat 14 points clear of Liverpool after a narrow victory over Chelsea in January, albeit having played two games more, but would be pushed all the way to the final match of the Premier League season by the Reds despite being declared champions by many months ahead of May.
Klopp will be hoping a similar scenario plays out this year, though the tussle for the title may well involve Arsenal on this occassion.
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