Liverpool may have tied Jurgen Klopp to a new contract but the club needs to already be planning for the day the German departs, says Stan Collymore, with warnings to be taken from domestic rivals.
The Reds have positioned themselves at the top of domestic, European and global games under their German tactician.
Champions League and Club World Cup triumphs could be complemented by a Premier League title success in 2020.
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Foundations are being put in place for a dynasty to be built, with Klopp having committed to terms at Anfield through to 2024.
Liverpool do, however, only need to look to the likes of Manchester United and Arsenal for examples of how empires can crumble when iconic figures such as Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger either depart or lose their way.
Collymore believes those on Merseyside need to be drawing up contingency plans at this stage, with long-term thinking sitting alongside more immediate goals.
The former Reds striker told The Mirror: “I hope Liverpool owners FSG are looking at United and Arsenal and knowing that now is the time to make sure that when Klopp does go — and he will, one day — the club will continue to enjoy the same sort of success they are enjoying now.
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“Because the only club I know for sure are doing that at the moment is Manchester City.
“If they got rid of Pep Guardiola right now and brought in a replacement with a similar philosophy, we already know those in positions of power at the Etihad will be making sure they have robust mechanisms in place to be able to roll with the punches in the way United and Arsenal did not.
“Football is like any other great industry in that, if you reach the top you have to work even harder to stay there because, if you don’t, you won’t stay there.
“Look at Tesco, the Co-op, Sainsbury’s… when all of those companies have been top of the tree and have taken their position for granted, a rival has come along and undercut them, made their supply chain better or introduced a different range to steal their thunder.
“Success can disappear far more quickly than it arrives.”
Liverpool have opened up a 13-point lead at the top of the Premier League table in 2019-20, while also reaching the last 16 of the Champions League and readying themselves for a derby date with neighbours Everton in the third round of the FA Cup.
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