The Brazilian is just concentrating on securing a top-four finish for the first time since 2009 despite the Reds topping the Premier League table on Christmas Day

Lucas Leiva insists Liverpool’s primary focus this season is qualifying for the Champions League.

Brendan Rodgers’ side have the honour of sitting top of the Premier League table on Christmas Day, but Lucas dismissed talk of the club winning its first top-flight title since 1990.

Instead, the Brazilian has set his sights on a top-four finish after a four-year absence from Europe’s premier club competition.

“As the club has not played in the Champions League for the last three years, certainly our first goal is to return to this competition,” he told Perform.

“As for the title, I think we still have many games left and we still can not talk about it. It has been almost half [the season], but it is still too early.

“It is also too early to say who is the favourite to win, just as it is too early to say that the team who is in relegation zone is out as well.

“Today, the league is very balanced. The teams that did not lose points in recent years, are now dropping points.

“We are certainly one of the candidates because we’re up there. But I believe we have to go step by step and not let the excitement of the crowd and others people affect the squad, because we have to stay focused.”

Liverpool face a stern test of their title credentials before the end of 2013, with trips to Manchester City and Chelsea to round off the year.

The England captain believes the Reds can be considered title contenders if they are still in the race with 10 remaining but is adamant that finishing in the top four is paramount

Liverpool skipper Steven Gerrard has called for the Reds to maintain their fantastic start to the season and finish in the top four.

Brendan Rodgers’ side currently lead the way at the top of the Premier League, with Saturday’s 3-1 win over Cardiff City propelling the Merseysiders above Arsenal and to the summit of England’s top-flight.

But a cautious Gerrard is adamant that ending the campaign in the Champions League spots remains the primary aim and is not getting carried away with the Reds’ position in the table.

He told Sky Sports: “With the talent we’ve got in the squad and the way we’ve started, we’ve set ourselves up with a magnificent chance of finishing in the top four so if we were to let that slip and finish outside everyone would be disappointed.

“The key to us is to finish inside the top four, it helps the club financially to bring players in and to end that long spell without it.

“I think we’re title contenders if we’re in the title race with 10 games to go – I don’t get carried away or change targets or raise expectations around the city just because we’ve started the season very strong.

“To be in the title race you’ve got to be there with 10 games to go with a realistic challenge of winning it. I do have confidence and belief in my team-mates that we’re capable of surprising a few people this season.”

The England captain, 33, also conceded that he would be prepared to leave Liverpool if he falls out of first-team favour in the future.

He said: “If something happens where I fall out of contention or someone else comes along and takes my place and I stop enjoying it, if I still feel I could offer someone else something of course I’d consider it, but for the time being I can see myself seeing it out here.”

The Uruguayan has fired Brendan Rodgers’ men to the top of the Premier League with 19 goals in just 12 matches, but his team-mate believes there is even more to come

Liverpool midfielder Lucas Leiva has warned the rest of the Premier League that red-hot striker Luis Suarez can get even better.

Suarez has been in unstoppable form since returning from suspension, scoring 19 goals in just 12 league appearances to help lift Liverpool to the top of the table for Christmas.

The Uruguay international has set a new Premier League record in December, becoming the first player to score 10 goals in a calendar month since the division’s inception in 1992.

Those strikes have come in just four games, with Suarez seemingly relishing the added responsibility of captaining Brendan Rodgers’ side in the absence of the injured Steven Gerrard.

England skipper Gerrard labelled Suarez “the best player in the world” on current form after watching the 26-year-old score twice in Liverpool’s 5-0 rout of Tottenham on December 15, while Lucas feels his team-mate has established himself as the leading star in the English top flight.

“Suarez has done very well,” he told Perform. “After being suspended for the first five games of the season, in 12 games he has scored 19 goals if I am not wrong.

“[This] is at the level of Ronaldo and Messi … I believe he is now among the top five in the world for everything he has done this season.

“He is a player who improves every day. He had some problems in the past but he learned and now he is much quieter, without losing that aggressiveness on the field.

“That’s good, because he can play even better.”