Joe Gomez: We can't let-up - we need to be relentless

Liverpool have produced a stellar start to 2018-19, but that doesn’t mean they are satisfied according to Joe Gomez, who has stressed the need to remain ‘relentless’.

The Reds continued their excellent form with a dramatic 3-2 Champions League victory over Paris Saint-Germain at Anfield on Tuesday night, adding to the five consecutive wins secured in the domestic campaign.

Gomez insists no-one in the dressing room is getting carried away as they seek to extend that sequence against Southampton this weekend.

The defender told Liverpoolfc.com: “As a team, we’ve got off to a great start. If you’d said in the summer we’d win all our first six games, we’d have bitten your hand off to take it.

“It’s a great, a great experience for us, but we have to keep going and keep progressing. That’s what a top team has to do – never be satisfied, thinking we’ve won a few and have any kind of breathing space. We need to keep going and be relentless every week. We want to beat every team we play.

“That’s what we have to carry on trying to do and we have so many characters in the dressing room who will make sure none of us rest – there is Hendo, Millie and so many others who are on us every week, making sure we stick to the principles and keep going.

“PSG is behind us now – we got the result, we got the three points and that’s good, but now it’s onto the next one. Every Premier League game is a massive game with three points up for grabs. They’re what we want.”

While Liverpool have received praise as a collective, Gomez has also won plenty of individual plaudits for his authoritative displays in the centre of defence alongside Virgil van Dijk.

But although happy to be fully fit and playing regularly, the 21-year-old has remained grounded.

“As an individual, I find it quite easy - I don’t like to get ahead of myself or anything like that,” Gomez explained. “I don’t get too high with the highs, or too low with the lows, I try to keep balanced.

“It’s probably from past experiences that I know I am fortunate to be doing what I’m doing every day. When you look at life, we’re very blessed to be doing the job we do, so it’s not about getting ahead of myself or thinking I’ve done this and that. I’m still so young and have a lot to learn.

“As a team, the gaffer is always there; he is very aware of who we are as people and wouldn’t let that happen.”

Not that it would ever be a concern when it comes to Gomez, who recognises there’s still plenty of development to be made in order to reach his potential.

“It’s nice to get off to a good start, but it’s still early in the season and there’s a lot of work still to be done,” he continued. “I’ve got to keep developing, taking it game by game and not look too far ahead into the future.

“I’ve just got to look to the weekend and then after that the next game; I’ve got to not try to look at the bigger picture too much, just enjoy the experience as it comes and take on board what I can. I am learning every day and that’s what I want to keep on doing. There’s a lot still to do.”

Liverpool have had to demonstrate different facets to their game to tally six wins out of six.

In addition to the swashbuckling attacking play, there’s also been defensive resilience on show to see out fixtures and collect maximum points.

“I think every game in the Premier League is always a test, but they’re all different in their own way,” Gomez reflected. “At the weekend, Tottenham was a big game because they’re going to be one of the top teams challenging for the title.

“Getting a result at Palace was quite a tough game, so I’d probably say those two have stood out the most for me in terms of getting a good result and seeing out the games.

“I think it’s important, any of the top teams that have challenged for the title, if you look over their seasons they’ll have seen some tough games out. That’s why Palace was one of those because although we got the goal at the end, before then we were under a bit of pressure and could have drawn, but we saw it out.

“I think there’ll have to be a lot of that this year – we’re not always going to thrash teams, so we’re going to have to beat the press, stay compact defensively if we’re seeing a game out. It’s going to be important."

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