Sadio Mane: 'Liverpool have confidence back after Arsenal win'

Liverpool winger Sadio Mane has said that his side have regained their confidence following their 3-1 victory over Arsenal last weekend.

The Reds have been in poor form so far in 2017, winning just two of their 12 outings across all competitions prior to their victory over the Gunners at Anfield.

Liverpool have saved their best performances for matches against their closest rivals while slipping up in games they are expected to win this season, but Mane has called on the team to improve their consistency.

"If you want to get to another level, you have to be consistent. If you see the last few weeks, it has been difficult but we have great qualities in the team. If we want to be in the top four, we need to be consistent," he told Sky Sports News.

"The most important thing is the reaction. We reacted [to the defeat at Leicester] by winning against Arsenal and the confidence is back now and we are looking forward. We are one of the top teams in terms of physicality. Maybe you can say mentality [is the reason for inconsistency] but I don't think it's that. We have had bad moments so we have to accept this and look forward.

"I think the most important thing for us is ourselves and not to think about what people will say. We have to focus on ourselves and give our best. We have to be ready for the next game. If we lose we have to be ready. Every loss or win is a big motivation. All 11 games will be tough. Any team can win anything and we have to take game by game and try to focus and win and look forward."

Liverpool will host Burnley on Saturday knowing that a win would lift them five points clear of fifth-placed Arsenal.