The claim comes from assistant manager Sammy Lee, who knows a thing or two about winning titles with four to his credit as a Liverpool player.

Now he is bringing his experience to the club's best chance of lifting the crown in 19 years.

Currently Lee is standing in for boss Rafael Benitez, who is still recovering from a kidney stones operation.

The Spaniard, who has had a second minor operation this week, is still expected to be back on the bench for the Boxing Day home game with Bolton, when Liverpool will be bidding to complete a calendar year without losing a home league game.

Lee and the rest of the Anfield staff have witnessed Chelsea twice in successive games, failing to take advantage of Liverpool draws to steal top spot from them.

So Liverpool go into Christmas top at this stage for the first time since 1996.

And Lee believes the Anfield squad have improved vastly on last season, and says: "There have been an awful lot of improvements from last season, the way we are playing. The points tally show there is an improvement.

"People ask and expect more, and they are entitled to want that. That is the esteem that Liverpool are held in that people do want more from us all the time. We are stronger, getting stronger."

Liverpool, who were 10 points behind the leaders last term at this stage, have a strong backroom staff with title-winning experience.

Benitez has won two titles with Valencia, Lee four with Liverpool, while coach Mauricio Pellegrino also won the Spanish crown under Benitez.

Lee says: "People like myself and Mauricio Pellegrino have experience of winning titles, and any experience we can pass on we will do. But the players know what they have got to do.

"But we have got complete trust in these players, they know the job that has to be done.

"More importantly, they know what they want to do for themselves. What they have to do.

"We are top and it is important that we stay top. I'd certainly take this rather than last season which was way off the top spot.

"I would have accepted that position at the start of the season."

Liverpool could have Fernando Torres back following a hamstring injury, while Javier Mascherano has recovered from the illness which sidelined him at Arsenal on Sunday.

And Lee brushed aside criticisms from Arsenal's Emmanuel Adebayor over Liverpool's alleged physical approach in that 1-1 draw at the Emirates.

He said: "We are not interested in what other people say, only on ourselves. It is up to them, their opinions, but we won't be getting involved.

"We just know what we have to do, we must focus on our job and not what other people think or say.

He added: "Bolton will present a difficult challenge, they have been very hard to beat over the recent years and nothing has changed there.

"Because of my time there(as manager), I have tremendous respect for the club and everyone at Bolton.

"I was happy and proud to be manager of Bolton, and that sense of pride and honour was only out-weighed by the sense of disappointment that my time there did not go well.

"The fans were outstanding, they were great with me and more importantly, the players. It did not go well for me, personally, but there is no malice from me. Just pride that I was their manager, a great honour. It just did not go well.

"Now I am just concentrating on my job at Liverpool. I am so pleased to be back as assistant to a very good manager, if not the best, in the Premier League."

Lee believes Liverpool can still improve as the second half of the season gets under way.

He said: "We as a club have always looked to improve, and that is still the aim.

"The club has been built on that from Bill Shankly to now. That is what the foundation has been built on so when we win things, not if we win them, we will still be aiming for more improvement."