Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers believes that his team will be close to delivering Champions League football if they can continue their form from the opening weeks of the season.
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The Anfield club, who host Fulham in the Premier League on Saturday, were beaten for the second time in the league this season when they lost 2-0 at leaders Arsenal last weekend.
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But with no European football or League Cup action to contend with, they currently reside in third place with 20 points from their first 10 games of the season.
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And Rodgers feels that maintaining that pace will be enough to avoid extending their exile from the Champions League into a fifth season.
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Ahead of the visit of the Cottagers, Rodgers has been boosted by the availability of Brazilian playmaker Philippe Coutinho, who came off the bench at the Emirates Stadium following a shoulder injury, as well as Glen Johnson, who missed that game through illness.
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The four teams below them are all within a point, but Rodgers feels his side are on the right track.
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"If you look at where we're at, if you're averaging two points a game, you would like to think you would get into the Champions League," Rodgers said.
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"Come Saturday, if we can get another three points, which we'll be fighting hard for, that would take us above that.
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"We're just treating every game as an important game for us in our quest this year. We just need to keep focusing and keep our concentration.
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"We've got some players coming back now, like young Philippe Coutinho, who adds a genuine quality to our game. My history as a coach shows that I love players with personality and technique. This is a player that has got a high level of technical ability and a strong personality.
The coach should not talk about the UCL yet, I don't think that is a reality right about now. I still see them finishing below top4