Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has admitted that Manchester United are nonetheless not at Liverpool 's stage - despite the fact that they completed forward of their nice rivals within the Premier League final season.
The 2 nice north-west golf equipment meet at Previous Trafford on Sunday with United supervisor Solsjkaer underneath stress.
United have been second to champions Manchester Metropolis final season with Liverpool end fourth.
However talking at lunchtime as we speak Solskjaer mentioned: 'Liverpool are one of the teams we are trying to catch up on, even though last season we were ahead of them maybe because of bad luck with injuries.
'We know we still have to improve to get up to the level of their last four years.
'It's going to take everything to get results against the best teams in the world and Europe and Liverpool are one of them.
'They're one of the teams we're chasing. What we've done the last four years is what we're striving towards and go past them. They had a bad spell last year but are now back to their best.
'We have not won the league in the last eight years. You can understand Man City or Liverpool walking onto the pitch and think quality is enough.
'We have players who need to keep on improving and developing.'
Solskjaer admitted he could also be with out playmaker Bruno Fernandes who picked up a knock as United recovered from two down at half-time to beat Atalanta within the Champions League in midweek.
'We have two or three with knocks and yeh he may be one of them,' added the Norwegian.
However Solskjaer additionally hopes Wednesday's comeback win can propel his workforce out of a rut. Their final Premier League outing noticed them lose 4-2 at Leicester final Saturday. In the event that they lose tomorrow United will probably be seven factors behind Liverpool with some robust video games to comply with. 'Those comeback are something that we have done plenty of times here at the club, it's in our DNA,' mentioned Solskjaer.
'It's never give in. It's the tile of Sir Alex's documentary. That is what our followers anticipate from us, to offer every thing you've, give your finest the entire time and while you try this with the standard of the gamers you've right here you possibly can win and lose video games, however come out of it having given every thing. 'I saw a team in the first half against Atalanta giving everything. We needed half-time to push that belief a little bit more and keep believing what we're doing and hopefully this is now the end of a bad period for us.
'Good teams come together and if that was the start of something, that's what we hope.'
Solskjaer was requested concerning the pressures of administration within the wake of Steve Bruce's sacking at Newcastle this week. Bruce urged in an interview that the load of the criticism and abuse had turn into too heavy to hold.
The United supervisor mentioned: 'We all have our own ways of dealing with criticism but we're in a high profile position and you're always gonna get good comments, bad comments and you cannot let yourself be too affected.
'It might be affecting others around you more than yourself, which filters through to you.
'But we know we are high profile and performances sometimes are not really bad or really good but the result decides the narrative of what people would like to think about you.
'I enjoy managing, I enjoy this life. I don't think anyone would be in this occupation if they didn't believe in themselves.'