Labour mayor and Liverpool fan Sadiq Khan says he is “hoping it’s a great year for the Reds” as he urged Londoners to re-elect him in May.

Mr Khan said he needed more time to deliver “meaningful change” as he said he was proud of what he had achieved in his first term.

Speaking to the Evening Standard yesterday as he headed to Brussels to call for pro-Europe Londoners to be allowed “associate citizenship of the EU”, Mr Khan was asked whether the mayoral race was akin to the race for the Premier League title.

Liverpool are 25 points ahead and heading for their first championship in 30 years. A QMUL poll late last year put Mr Khan more than 20 points ahead of Tory rival Shaun Bailey.

Mr Khan told me: “If Jurgen [Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp] was here he would explain that actually nothing is won yet. You don’t take anything for granted. The most important thing is to focus on the prize and continue doing your best.

“That is what I intend to do as somebody who wants to achieve the summit like Liverpool will do and I’m hoping it’s a great year for the Reds, whether it’s the Labour mayor of London or Jurgen’s Red Army in Liverpool.”

With about 90 days until the May 7 election, and his rivals active on social media, was it approaching “squeaky bum time”?

Mr Khan said: “The most important poll is the one on May 7. Polls will say different things. They thing is that it is a two-horse race between me and Boris Johnson’s Tory candidate. Only one of us is going to be the Mayor.

“What I’m saying to those who support the Greens and those who support the Lib-Dems is lend me your vote on May 7 to endure that Boris Johnson’s guy doesn’t become the Mayor.”

(Mr Khan has been criticised by Green candidate Sian Berry for, in her view, misleading voters about the two votes they can cast for their first and second choice candidates.)

Asked how the current campaign compared to that four years ago, when his main rival was Tory Zac Goldsmith, he said: “A big difference is I don’t need to explain to every journalist what being a Muslim means, or the fact that being a Muslim doesn’t necessarily mean you are a terrorist or a terrorist sympathiser.

“It’s quite nice not to have to talk about my faith or my family or my previous career as a lawyer.”

Mr Khan then launched unprompted into a breathless rendition of his “greatest hits” as Mayor – with barely a moment’s hesitation, repetition or deviation.

He may never make it onto Just A Minute but prepare to hear more of the same as polling day approaches.

He said: “The key thing I’m focusing on over the next few weeks as the campaign begins is my delivery – I’m very proud of some of the things we have achieved in relation to air quality. The world’s first ultra low emission zone – we have reduced nitrogen dioxide by a third.

“I’m really proud of the fact we’ve got the Night Tube and Night Overground running. I’m really proud of the fact we have frozen TfL fares, when they rose by 42 per cent under the previous guy [Boris Johnson]. I’m really proud we have got the unlimited Hopper [bus fare].

“I’m really proud we started last year more council homes than 1994. In three years in a row we have broken the records for the most number of genuinely affordable homes begun, after ditching the dodgy definition.

“I’m really proud we have been tough on crime and tough on the causes. We have seen knife crime injuries in under 25s go down last year by 10 per cent. Homicides this year are going down. Moped crime is going down. Acid attacks are going down. We have invested huge sums in young Londoners and also the police.

“I’m really proud the progress we are making in standing up for London’s values, whether it’s against Donald Trump, Boris Johnson or anybody else.

“Progress has been made but you need much more time to bring meaningful change. I’m looking forward to Londoners allowing me to finish the job with re-electing me in term two.”