He has enjoyed watching the present team develop under Jurgen Klopp but even though they lead the Premier League by eight points, he holds out a small glimmer of hope for Graham Potter’s men at Anfield on Saturday.
“I’ve worked on all the games as a pundit, and in our analysis, we’re obviously reduced to nit-picking at the moment,” he says. “We’re not getting bored with winning, but because there are no major flaws, we are asking ‘What could be better? Where can they improve?’
“And this season we have ridden our luck a number of times and taken the clock to the 94th minute to get results – Aston Villa springs to mind, Sheffield United as well. We’ve had to come from behind to win. As good as that is for what it says about your mental strength, it can be a concern. You feel that that game is coming where you don’t actually get over the line and we drop two points or even three."
He was speaking before Wednesday's Champions League game with Napoli and his words proved prophetic. But can Liverpool slip up in successive games, and if so, where might they be vulnerable?
“Clean sheets have been a problem. The foundation of a good performance is a clean sheet and we were fantastic at that last season, limiting teams’ opportunities. Partly this time round we have been conceding sloppy goals and making silly mistakes, which is down to lack of concentration at times. But also the Premier League these days is full of good managers and coaches who analyse everything and identify any area of weakness.
“In Liverpool’s case it may be a tendency to go for the jugular and to want to mix it with teams instead of sitting back. Some teams have had joy because of that. So as much as you would feel it will be three points for Liverpool, you have to treat every opponent with respect and do the analysis. From what I’ve seen, Brighton will not be afraid to take the game to Liverpool.”
Those small reservations apart, he has been delighted by what he has seen from Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp, and he gives credit to the Fenway Sports Group, the owners of the Boston Red Sox, who bought the club in 2010.
“It has been amazing,” he says. “Supporting the club as a child and then playing for them was extra-special but I am always a fan at heart and I have the luxury of going to watch them week-in, week-out. Until the new owners and Jurgen arrived, we wondered about the direction the club was going in. There was instability, different managers, players coming and going, but it has moved forward in a new direction.
“There are some great people running the club at the moment. They have respected the history and the legacy. It would have been easier for them to have bought a plot of land and built a new super stadium but they realised that the history is there in front of the Kop, where titles have been won. It was sad to see the old main stand go but I have played on the pitch again in legends games and it is still Anfield even though that new stand is so massive. That is a job well done because you can lose an identity so easily.
“The last three and a half years under Jurgen have been brilliant – the style of football, the recruitment and the ambition. But not only are we pushing consistently for titles, some of the games we have seen will stay with us forever.
“So far it has been an upward curve. Reaching the Europa League final in 2016 was massive for the club’s progress even though we didn’t get over the line. The appetite for success grew, they identified weaknesses and brought in personnel to cover them.
“The Champions League final in Kiev in 2018 was another step forward. We were up against a well-drilled machine in Real Madrid going for a hat-trick of Champions Leagues and they beat us but it improved our mentality and you could see that last season as we pushed Manchester City all the way.
“Coming back to beat Barcelona in the Champions League semi-final after a heavy first-leg defeat did wonders for our confidence and then we reached the final again. To win it was the turning-point that proved we belonged and could mix it with the big boys, the elite of world football, and we have started this season in that mindset.”
McAteer played in a very different Liverpool team alongside Jamie Redknapp, Robbie Fowler and Steve McManaman under Roy Evans and Gerard Houllier but would he have enjoyed playing in the present outfit?
“I like to think I was a Jurgen Klopp type of player as a wing back – very fit, very energetic, I liked to get up and down and could put a decent ball into the box - but whether I would get in ahead of Trent Alexander-Arnold I couldn’t say!
“We played three at the back with me and Stig-Inge Byornebye as wing backs who were free to go and attack and not worry too much about defensive duties. But Jurgen only plays two centre backs and still pushes Robertson and Trent forward. At times it’s almost a front five.”
He is a fan of the relatively unsung midfield, who may lack the star quality of some previous Liverpool engine rooms but serve the needs of the team just as well as the Gerrards and Sounesses of previous years.
“As much as you’ve seen Fabinho score a 25-yarder against Man City, the midfield is more industrious than spectacular. They can and they do score goals but mainly they help the front three to press, they win the ball back, they are very fit and they read the game very well. And they give the ball to the front three in areas where they can do damage.
“At first we couldn’t forecast the team Jurgen would play but it’s gradually picking itself now. You might see Oxlade-Chamberlain or Lallana or James Milner at times, but generally it will be Henderson, Wijnaldum and Fabinho. We have an idea of his strongest side now and with that comes consistency and everyone knowing their jobs and everyone else’s.
“We had that at times in the 1990s. Stig and I used to get compliments for picking out Robbie Fowler, but we knew where he was going to be and he knew where we were going to put the ball. It wasn’t telepathic, we all just understood each other’s role in the team. It comes with playing together often.”
As well as over 100 appearances for Liverpool, McAteer also won 52 caps for Ireland, including a substitute appearance in that famous World Cup win over Italy in New Jersey in 1994. He welcomes an Irish influence in any Premier League side and is happy to see Shane Duffy and Aaron Connolly thriving in Potter’s team.
“Liverpool have always had that Irish element, John Aldridge, Ronnie Whelan, Stan Staunton, Ray Houghton,” he says. “But for a spell a lot of the Ireland team were scattered around the Championship and League One. Now Irish players are in the Premier League, Sheffield United, Burnley, Brighton.
“That is healthy for Irish football because you want your players performing at the highest possible level for good young managers with bright ideas. And mostly they are getting into starting lineups, not just sitting on benches. So that helps when Mick McCarthy gets them; they are all up to speed and ready to go.
“The present European Championships campaign has shown that. They had two stabs at qualification against Switzerland and Denmark but just missed out but they have another bite of the cherry through the playoffs. The camaraderie and togetherness is back and it was good to see Connolly get his chance so early. Shane Duffy has been a stalwart for years now, marshalling the back four. He’s one of Mick’s big players.”
It was also on Ireland duty that McAteer got to know former Albion boss Chris Hughton, and was sad to see him leave the club at the end of last season. “I know Chris very well. It’s difficult when you have to play a style of football to stay in a division and it isn’t pretty.
"A lot of teams do it when they don’t have the luxury of being able to go out and spend a lot on players. You have to deal with the squad you have got and play accordingly. I feel Chris has been unlucky with some clubs over the years, Newcastle especially. But he is a fantastic fella and a fantastic coach. I’m sure he will bounce back. There are a few managers under pressure and a few jobs that could become available where he would slot in well.”
After retirement, McAteer struggled with mental health issues at times and last year he worked with LFCTV to produce an impressive documentary, Jason McAteer: Through The Storm – mental health in football and society, available on YouTube.
“People who have watched my career from the outside presume that I’m a happy-go-lucky character who likes a laugh but when your career ends it can be daunting to look at a future without 25 mates around and a big support network to take care of you,” he says. “And I had few personal issues at the time and things started spiralling out of control.
“There are all kinds of depression and people can fall into it in their own way and without knowing they are in that position. Outwardly I appeared in control but friends and family noticed that I was doing strange things, acting out of character. It was my mum who told me I needed to get help so I went to see a therapist and I was with her for six or seven months and we got everything together. I was lucky but for some people help can come too late.
“I thought it was an important chapter to put in my book (Blood, Sweat and McAteer: a Footballer’s Story) and to speak out and, I hoped, help other people. The documentary, thanks to the people who worked on it with me, is uplifting, informative but also very sad at times. It was put together very carefully because we were dealing with some very sensitive subjects and with some people who are still struggling with their mental health.
“I hope the documentary did the subject justice, and I’m quite proud of it. We felt that my story was one to tell and hopefully it has helped people to understand that they are not alone and that it’s important to tell people if you have problems. Especially men: we live in a world of bravado where we feel we can’t show weakness because we fear how people will judge us. But if you have a problem, speak up, because there are people who will be sympathetic and are there to help you out.”