Liverpool midfielder, Georginio Wijnaldum says the team is sharper and more concentrated in their bid to defend the Premier League crown they won last season.
The Reds won the trophy for the first time in three decades last season, beating Manchester City to it by 18 points.
In a bid to continue their meteoric rise under Jurgen Klopp, Liverpool has so far picked up maximum points in their first three games of the season, beating Leeds United, Chelsea, and Arsenal.
This is in contrast to their performance after wrapping up the title with seven matches to spare. Although after securing the title, their performances somehow slipped.
Having started the season on a good note, the motivation levels within the dressing room looksto be on the rise again to record more success.
Overall collective hunger behind Liverpool’s form
Although they are out of the EFL Cup after losing on penalties to the Gunners on Thursday, which somehow halted the momentum, Klopp will be expecting a strong response when they take in a trip to Aston Villa on Sunday.
Thiago Alcantara will be out of action alongside Sadio Mane after they tested positive to COVID-19. Liverpool will still be at full strength as they bid to maintain their perfect start to the campaign.
According to Wijnaldum, a collective hunger to hold onto the Premier League trophy has led to an increase in intensity levels behind the scenes at Anfield over the past few weeks.
“Because the group was together for a long time, everyone knows each other and it’s basically the same as we did in previous seasons.
“The only thing we did now is, because we turned champions, you just want to give more and win it again. We train hard as we did before – maybe even harder because we know we can’t do things less because we know how difficult it is to win games and to perform.
“We just do the things we did last season, but we are sharper and more concentrated,” he told Liverpool’s official website.
Liverpool hoping for European success again
After winning the Champions League last two seasons, Liverpool will also be bidding to get their hands on European silverware again. They have been drawn in Group D alongside Ajax, Atalanta and FC Midtjylland in the latest edition of the Champions League.
Being a Dutchman, Wijnaldum is looking forward to facing several of his team-mates from the Netherlands national team at Ajax. He is also wary of the threat all three teams will pose when the action kicks off later this month.
“I know a lot of players who play there, I play with a few players at the national team. It’s a good one to play against them.
“They deserve the respect with the kind of football they play – I talk about all three teams in the pool.
“They deserve our respect and we will show them that we have respect by giving 100 percent and doing our best to win the games,” he added.
