Andy Robertson: Liverpool have been in a league of our own this season

Twenty-six-year-old talks title celebrations and why the champions will not drop their relentless standards

“We have put so much work into it. We deserve it. We deserved that moment last night.”

On Friday afternoon, Andy Robertson was still shaking off the remnants – heavy eyes, a sore head, hoarse voice – of the night before. Liverpool, 23 points clear at the summit, became Premier League champions on Thursday without kicking a ball.

The squad and backroom team were gathered at Formby Hall for a bonding session they crossed fingers would also count as a celebration of ending a 30-year wait for the title.

A big screen was set up outside, with Chelsea’s hosting of Manchester City the centrepiece of the barbecue.

“We decided the morning after the win over Crystal Palace to get together,” Robertson revealed.

“We thought if Man City win, which would not have been a surprise, the worst case is we have a team-bonding barbecue, go home and try to get a point at the Etihad next week.

“That is all we would have needed. It just felt the right thing to do, because if we were all sitting in the house last night it would not have been the same.

“We wanted to be together. We have had a long season and been through so much together and not celebrating with the lads would have been the wrong thing to do.

“We absolutely made the right call and luckily it went for us. It was emotional and we all deserve it.

Goals from Christian Pulisic and Willian dethroned Pep Guardiola’s side, leading Liverpool to count down to the final whistle and soak in their status as England’s best.

Robertson revealed the festivities were fuelled by emotion but were light-hearted rather than the backdrop for any big addresses.

“The gaffer does speeches every day but last night there was no need,” the left-back said when asked if Jurgen Klopp had anything special words to say.

“There was enough emotion in the room that there was probably no need for him to speak. You see his emotion in some of the interviews that he’s done.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp after his side’s title triumph (Sky Sports)

“A lot of us were like that. There were no need for big speeches, it was lads just trying to drink it in and enjoy the moment because we have done something that people at this club haven’t done before.

“We’ve got a Premier League trophy in the cabinet for Liverpool now. That’s all we wanted at the start of the season and to achieve that is so special. It’s something I will never forget, we will never forget.

“Hopefully, there is a couple more before this squad has to retire. That’s the aim. We want to win more trophies and hopefully we can start on that next season.”

Robertson pinpointed lifting the club’s sixth European Cup and the first trophy under Klopp as the means of “getting over the hurt” of missing out on the title to City by a point last time out.

“If we had to go home after the last game of the season against Wolves and not see the lads for another six or seven weeks that would have been really tough,” he said.

“But the fact that we took the next step... There was a lot of talk for the first couple of years that the gaffer was here with people saying he was starting to build a special squad, but it was up to us to go and show it by producing a trophy.

“Producing the Champions League made us winners and we got the feeling for it. That’s why we came back in pre-season as if this year is going to be our year for the Premier League, we are going to make it our year for the Premier League and we are going to go out and do it. We are going to show everyone we can win the league, and we can go again and get the better of Man City this time and not be behind them.

“We’ve shown that from the get go, from day one we showed it against Norwich at home and we’ve continued that. We’ve probably been in a league of our own this season.”

The Scotland captain expects the Reds’ rivals to fortify ahead of the new campaign.

“City will come back next season,” Robertson said. “They will be hurt by it. We were hurt last season. Other teams will come back. Chelsea have made a few good signings, Man United will look to come back.

“We need to be the best again. We can’t rest. We can’t just expect to do it. We kept our consistency and concentration at 100 percent with everything we have done, whether it is training or games, being relentless.

“When people thought we might drop points, we have shown that was not us. Leicester away was the perfect example. So many people were talking before the game about whether we would be tired, fatigued or jet-lagged and all that. There was no chance that was going to happen. We probably proved a lot of people wrong that night. Time and time again we have proven people wrong.

“Hopefully that continues, because we do not let anything drop below 100 per cent in this place and the minute we do we will have trouble. We will not allow it and the manager won’t allow it. As long as it is like that, we have a chance to win trophies.”