Liverpool proved it deserves a place among the top four clubs in England despite a 2-1 Boxing Day loss at Manchester City, manager Brendan Rodgers said.

City was forced to come from behind to preserve its perfect home record on Thursday and also had cause to be thankful for a controversial disallowed Liverpool goal in the first half.

"I was very proud of the players; I thought they were absolutely outstanding," Rodgers told the club's website.

"They really took the game to a team that is a top, top side full of top European players.

"I think people will go away and look at us as a team that's hopefully going to be up there challenging.

"Our main objective is to set up camp in the top four. That's what this club has been striving to accomplish for a number of years.

"But we have shown consistently over this year that we are hopefully going to be in with a right good chance of doing that.

"I think performances like tonight ... show that we have the quality to do that. We didn't get the points, but we will recover well now and get onto the next game."

The defeat leaves Liverpool, which could have taken over top spot with a victory, in fourth place in the league standings behind its next opponent, Chelsea, which it meets in London on Sunday.

"I thought we were excellent in our attitude," said Rodgers.

Liverpool last finished in the top four in the 2008-09 season and won the most recent of its 18 titles in 1989-90.

(China Daily 12/28/2013 page15)