I played against Messi, Salah and Haaland but Man United legend may be the best

The Crystal Palace midfielder, who's fit straight in at Selhurst Park since his free transfer from Bournemouth in the summer, has another daunting task after a career full of them.

With the fourth most appearances of any Colombian in Premier League history, the tough assignments keep coming for Lerma, who first moved to England in 2018.

Before that he spent three seasons in LaLiga with Levante, matching up against 13 Ballon d'Ors worth of talent in Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi while the pair were at Real Madrid and Barcelona.

Speaking exclusively to talkSPORT, he said: "I've been lucky enough to come up against some of the biggest stars, [Lionel] Messi and [Cristiano] Ronaldo in their best moments.

read more on crystal palace

'This is f******* corruption' - Palace co-owner goes viral for post-match rant live on TV

Liverpool can leapfrog leaders Arsenal if Klopp ends 12:30pm hoodoo against Crystal Palace

"That's given me more experience to come up against such good players. In terms of tomorrow, coming up against another great player in Salah, the most important thing is to stop him from having a good game.

"It's very difficult to say [who's the best I've faced] but probably Cristiano Ronaldo.

"They're totally different but they're all at the top of their game for a reason: they work hard, and that's why they're so successful."

Liverpool, and particularly manager Jurgen Klopp, have had their issue with 12:30pm Saturday kick-offs, with the manager even getting grumpy with a joke about them while on air in midweek.

Most read in Football

Man United to poach Newcastle chief, Palhinha transfer, ex-Premier League boss to Forest?

Former Arsenal man loves Declan Rice but insists Villa have a better no.6 right now

Sancho free to leave Man United in January and linked with swap for Borussia Dortmund star

Even Spurs' club reporter couldn't cheer Ange up as he shuts down 'good football' comment

The Reds have had the early slot a disproportionate amount over the years, and with their record in the games not always one to be proud of, Lerma and his teammates are feeling confident.

"We know that Liverpool are in a good place and that's why they're at the top of the table," he said.

"I believe that we'll be able to stop their players and be able to go head-to-head with each of them. It will be a great game."

Now in his fourth year in the Premier League and first with Palace, the 29-year-old could have moved abroad during the summer when his contract with the Cherries expired, but challenges like the one on Saturday are exactly why he stayed.

"My priority was always to stay in the Premier League," he revealed. "I did have options with other leagues but having spoken to my family we thought the best decision was to stay here.

"I thought the best decision was to stay in the best league in the world. It has such an incredible atmosphere here and that's one of the reasons why I wanted to stay."