Liverpool's Wijnaldum cautiously optimistic about title chances

Liverpool finished fourth last season, 17 points behind champions Chelsea, but could have delivered more of a challenge had they performed better against some of the lesser lights of the Premier League.

(Reuters)

Five of Liverpool's six league defeats were against teams who finished in the lower half of the table.

While Liverpool have been relatively quiet in the transfer market, adding only winger Mohamed Salah and 19-year-old striker Dominic Solanke ahead of the new season, they have maintained a core group of top players.

"I won't say that we can immediately win the title, but I think we have a squad who can compete for the title," Wijnaldum said in Hong Kong, where Liverpool are compeing in the Premier League Asia Trophy.

"I'm confident that we will not make the same mistakes like last season. I have the trust and confidence.

"I think we have a good base and we need to keep the things that went well."

The Merseyside club play Crystal Palace in their first match of the pre-season competition later on Wednesday.

(Reporting by Aditi Prakash in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)