The Christmas period, claims Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard, could prove influential in the Reds hopes for winning the Premiership. Gerrard knows that entering the New Year still as league leaders will send out a message of intent to their rivals.

"We're coming up to Christmas and that's when things really start to take shape," Gerrard told the club's official LFC Magazine.

"The festive season might not be as congested as it has been in the past few years in terms of the number of games we're going to play, but the results are more critical this season than they've been for ages - because of where we find ourselves in the league."

"I don't really think we've played our best football this season," the 28-year-old admitted.

"Looking back at the first half of the season, there's a lot for us to be happy with.

"But the fact is that the hardest part of the season is still to come."