Chris Sutton was taken aback by one thing that gives Liverpool edge over Man City and Arsenal

Former Premier League stalwart over rivals and in the chase for the title.

The Reds lead the table after seven games played, with a 1-0 win over the latest victory in what has been a strong start to the campaign. They boast one point advantage over their nearest challengers going into the international break, with the early signs suggesting that a potential tilt for the championship could be in the offing.

In addition to the promising league form, the Merseysiders have successfully navigated and EFL Cup commitments with victories over AC Milan and West Ham, respectively. Now, one-time Premier League champion Sutton has acknowledged that the strength of options at Arne Slot's disposal on his bench could make Liverpool a force to be reckoned with this term.

Speaking on The Monday Night Club on BBC 5 Live Sport, the ex-Blackburn Rovers and striker confessed he marvelled at the Reds' strength in depth at Selhurst Park at the weekend. The Reds had played Bologna in midweek, prompting some rotation from Slot for the trip to South London.

Eventually, the Dutchman was able to call upon outfield players Wataru Endo, , Dominik Szoboszlai, Andrew Robertson as reinforcements from the sidelines. In addition, goalkeeper Vitezslav Jaros also was introduced unexpectedly as .

Sutton said: "I looked at the Liverpool bench at the weekend, and I know they made changes as well and rotated a little bit, and when I see Man City’s squad and a lot being made about Rodri’s injury, and they’re going to miss him of course, and you look at Arsenal and Arteta gives young players opportunities.

"But you look at Liverpool’s squad and think ‘Blimey’, that’s strong, that’s a deep squad that they’ve got. And they’re not going under the radar really, but I don’t think any of us really thought at the start of the season that Liverpool would be serious title contenders, and just at this moment in time, it’s a pretty impressive start from Slot."

Meanwhile, Reds coach was eager to remain grounded after the win gave him a ninth victory of his tenure so far- the best record of any manager in the club's history. Speaking after the result, he said: It definitely is [very satisfying].

"And it’s actually also quite special if you know how many great managers Liverpool had. But I also said last week I think that I hope they don’t only remember me in one, two, three, four, five years only for this."

He added: "We are hoping to do more special things than this. And it also says the luck I had that I inherited a very good squad and very good staff to continue getting the results that Jürgen [Klopp] had here as well."