Loris Karius has told kicker that Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester City and Arsenal are "standing eye-to-eye" in the Premier League title race.
German goalkeeper Karius, who joined Liverpool from Mainz in the summer, has established himself as first-choice under boss Jurgen Klopp and has helped the club to second place in the table, a point behind leaders Chelsea.
Manchester City are in third, trailing Liverpool on goal difference, with Arsenal two points behind the Reds in fourth, and Karius said those four teams would fight it out between them for the title this season.
"Chelsea, Manchester City, Arsenal and us," he told the German football magazine. "That quartet is standing eye-to-eye. Many thought City with Pep Guardiola would be the favourites, but Chelsea went on a brutal run recently. The direct duels could be decisive."
Liverpool have already played against Chelsea and Arsenal, and have taken all six points from their trips to the Emirates Stadium and Stamford Bridge.
However, they suffered a shock 2-0 defeat at Burnley in August and have since drawn with Tottenham, Manchester United and Southampton, with that 0-0 stalemate away to Saints last month seeing them drop to second place after having spent a week top of Premier League.
Karius, who has yet to lose a match with Liverpool, hopes to return to the top by the end of the campaign.
"It's a dream that is still far away, but we've not made that our goal because if you [do that and then] finish second you'd think the season was a disappointment," he said. "Our goal is to play in the Champions League next term."
Liverpool's title prospects have been hit by the news that Philippe Coutinho will be sidelined for five weeks, which Karius said was a "shock," but he hopes its impact will be softened by the fact they are not playing in European competition.
"One of our best players is sidelined, but we have a big squad and everyone's still fresh because we did not play that many matches this season," he said.
Karius also praised coach Jurgen Klopp's role in revitalising Liverpool.
"He successfully coached a big team at Dortmund for many years, has a clear philosophy and knows it works," he said. "Our young team feels that. We believe everything he says -- that's incredibly important, independent of tactics."