Joe Gomez insists quadruple-chasing Liverpool aren't taking anything for granted

Joe Gomez has hailed a ‘freshness and fire’ around Liverpool’s camp after a summer rebuild and admitted the Reds are not taking anything for granted following a turgid campaign last year, with Jurgen Klopp’s side still competing on four fronts.

The Premier League leaders have a chance to put one foot in the Carabao Cup final when they host Fulham in the first game of a two-legged semi-final on Wednesday, while they swatted away Arsenal away in the FA Cup and are in the last-16 draw for the Europa League.

But after finishing fifth last season, a position that seemed a miracle given their first half of the season - the Reds were 10th after this amount of games - Gomez has said the team has learned that football is not always plain-sailing and they are not taking this good start lightly.

‘We don’t want to get giddy,’ said Gomez, who will play his 200th game in a Liverpool shirt if he features against Fulham. He is also their longest-serving player and the only survivor from when Klopp took over.

‘We’re all just full of desire and want to make the best out of the season. All we can do is take it one game at a time.

‘I know it’s a cliche, but there’s desire and we have a platform to build on. We can’t take that for granted, as we know with last season, it’s not always plain-sailing and we went through rough patches but we built from it and learnt from it.

'So we have to keep at it. See where it takes us.

‘There’s definitely a good bond in the team. There’s a freshness and fire about the team.

We’re not over-analysing who we lost and who we don’t have. We’ve got top players who we’ve missed this year - Thiago, (Andy) Robertson, Kostas (Tsimikas), Mo going (Salah to AFCON).

‘But the gaffer keeps reiterating, we can all do a job defensively and we can all defend, means we don’t have to worry about who’s missing.

'We have to keep that mentality. It’s still early and there’s a long way to go but we can only take one at a time.’

Gomez, who excelled alongside Virgil van Dijk at centre back before a nasty injury, has shown his usefulness to the team this season with stellar performances at right back, central defence and left back.

He has had to fill in on that left side in recent weeks due to injuries to Andy Robertson (dislocated shoulder) and Kostas Tsimikas (broken collarbone) - but Gomez says he is learning to adapt and be versatile.

‘It’s different at left back,’ he added, laughing.

‘It’s been a challenge to adapt. Small, minor differences that maybe aren’t noted, maybe how you receive the ball and so on.

'But people at the club know me now, they know I will give my all.

‘I’ve been here long enough now but I’m grateful to play for the club. Attack each game, dig in as a team and try to do what we can do as a collective. We have some injuries but we will keep persevering.’

After 199 appearances, Gomez is yet to score a goal for the club - or at Charlton before his move - but has gone close with a couple of efforts in recent weeks. The 26-year-old bursted out in laughter when asked about that, clearly a question he is used to from friends.

‘Ha, it’s funny! I’ve gone eight years and now everyone is talking about it, I don’t know what sparked it! I want to affect the game when I’m forward as well and be positive.

'Hopefully it comes, we’ll see how I celebrate. I’ll leave taking my shirt off to Mo!’