EPL | Emile Heskey: All credit goes to German manager Jurgen Klopp

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp celebrates his team's win over Bournemouth after an EPL match last December. Pic/Getty Images

Liverpool may have lost three matches all of a sudden recently but that doesn't take away anything from their dominant performance in England and Europe throughout this season given they are way ahead in the English Premier League (EPL) race and very much in contention to defend their UEFA Champions League title.

And all credit for that must go to their German manager Jurgen Klopp, believes the club's former star striker Emile Heskey.

In the national capital for a Liverpool Football Club (LFC) World fan interaction initiative on Saturday, Heskey told mid-day that a team are only as good as its leader, in this case, manager. "A lot of Liverpool's success must be attributed to their manager. A team need a good leader to bring the best out of the players, and I believe Klopp has done a fantastic job in doing that. I believe the team's mentality this season has been excellent and that has allowed them to win many games which they previously may not have," said Heskey, 42, who won 2001 FA Cup with Liverpool.

Rafael Benitez too was a brilliant manager for Liverpool, but Heskey refused to compare the Spaniard with Klopp. "It's hard to compare Rafa with Klopp because they are both very different managers. They have totally different styles and have both still experienced their share of success with Liverpool," said Heskey.

Liverpool great Emile Heskey

Egyptian striker Mohamed Salah's influence too cannot be ignored. "I feel Salah has been phenomenal. Since arriving at Anfield, he has hit the ground running and has taken not just himself but also the entire team to another level," added Heskey.

After 28 matches this English Premiership, Liverpool (79) are a massive 22 points ahead of second-placed defending champions Manchester City (57), while third-placed Leicester City are a further seven points away (50) and fourth-placed Chelsea are on 45. The huge gap suggests that the other teams have fared poorly. However, Heskey begs to differ. "I don't think it's a lack of fight shown by the other teams in the Premiership. I don't think the other teams have been poor at all. It's just that Liverpool have been excellent." he signed off.

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