Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has admitted that his side need to stand up to the challenge when the going gets tough if they are to compete for honours next season.
The Reds saw their faint Champions League hopes all but ended on Tuesday night as they fell to a 1-0 defeat at the hands of relegation-threatened Hull City, capping off a disappointing season for the club.
Rodgers insisted that he has plenty of quality in his squad, but stressed the need to instil some toughness with summer signings.
"The challenge for next year is to build a team that can get through the rough waters as well and that is going to be critical for us," Rodgers told reporters.
"We've got a lot of fantastic players but when it is tough we have to get through that and if we want to make a challenge like we did last year, that is what we have to do.
"The challenge for me until the end of pre-season is to rebuild a group that can get through. The players here have given their best to meet that challenge but we have to refocus again and look to improve the squad."
Liverpool, who remain seven points adrift of fourth-placed Manchester United in the table, face Queens Park Rangers, Chelsea, Crystal Palace and Stoke City in their final four games of the season.
Barney Corkhill
