Tony Barrett of The Times joined Off the Ball tonight to take a look at the first clues on how to view Liverpool post-Luis Suarez. Despite a 2-1 win over Southampton at Anfield, with goals from Daniel Sturridge and Raheem Sterling, the Anfield side looked far off the blistering fluid pace that led to a serious title challenge last time out. And for Barrett, the absence of Suarez, no matter what the replacement plan is, cannot be ignored.

“You just cant get round the fac that he is one of the best players in the world and you dont get over that overnight.

“They were laboured...they just didnt get going, it was one of those games that I think a lot of Premier League teams suffered in their openeing fixture. Liverpool just couldn’t get going,” Barrett said.

The question hovering over Liverpool now is what we are to make of them. Last year they exceeded even the wildest epxectations, but this year that surprise factor – innocence even – is long gone. Can Rodgers and his side go one step further? Or is consolidation of their Champions League spot a far more realistic goal?

“On the one hand you can’t get too carried away because Liverpool have had a fundamental change,” Barrett said.

“They’ve added eight players to their squad and they’ve lost their absoilute match winner, but equally they should be looking for top four.

“I think if anyone says they should be challenging for the league title for the second sauccessive year, I think that is loading them with too much expectation...I just Liverpool this year their target has to be top four,” Barrett added.

Listen to the full interview with Tony Barret via the Football Show podcast below or download on iTunes