Virgil van Dijk believes Liverpool are at the start of a new dynasty of success.
Jurgen Klopp’s side will take on Tottenham in next month’s Champions League final after the Premier League duo over came Barcelona and Ajax respectively.
A 4-0 win over the Catalans saw the Reds complete an unlikely comeback to seal a second appearance in the showpiece of Europe’s elite club competition in 12 months.
Liverpool also head into the final weekend of their domestic campaign with the chance to win a first title since 1990 should Manchester City falter at Brighton.
But Van Dijk does not consider this season to be a failure if the reigning champions hold their nerve in the final strait of an enthralling title race.
He said: “Hopefully we are going to keep challenging for the title.
“Man City is, I think, one of the best teams in the world and they’ve shown the whole season how difficult they can make it for any team in the world.
“So we’ll see but we’re still in this season and there’s still anything possible.
“If it happens, it happens. We have no influence on that. They have it in their hands. We’ll see. If it doesn’t happen, it’s not the end of the world.
“We’ve had an amazing season both of us – Man City has been outstanding as well – and to compete with them says a lot about how we’re progressing.
“It’s just the start. It’s not like next year we’re not going to try and do it again.
“It’s something we have to build on but there’s still a game to play for them and us and we’ll see how it goes.”
The Holland captain also sees Liverpool’s scope for a sustained period of success due to its average squad age and increasing experience on the biggest stage.
“Obviously that’s something that we work towards,” admits Van Dijk.
“I feel that City have already that bit of status because they have been dominating the last year so much.
“Hopefully we can just keep going and make it very difficult for any team in the world.
“We’ve got a great age group I think, between 20 and 27, 28 so hopefully we can do it all together for the next couple of years at least and grow as a team.”