Roy Hodgson targeted a return to the Champions League and made clear his desire to keep stars Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres after being appointed Liverpool manager on Thursday.
The 62-year-old Englishman, who led Fulham to the Europa League final last season, was confirmed by Liverpool as the replacement for Rafael Benitez. Details of Hodgson's three-year contract were not disclosed.
"The priority is to try to help the team do better than last year, try and get back into the Champions League, where the club has always been," Hodgson told a news conference.
"This is a very big club, a club with enormous tradition, and in the future, when the club is sold, it will get stronger rather than weaker. I'm convinced that the chance to work here is the right deal for me at this point in my career."
Despite uncertainty over Liverpool's ownership and the financial constraints that come with failing to qualify for the Champions League, Hodgson described holding on to Gerrard, the England midfielder, and Torres, the Spain striker, as "very important for the club."
"I can't nail their feet to the floor but I can try to persuade them if they stay here we can have a good season," he said. "I'm very anxious that the club keeps all its best players."
The chairman, Martin Broughton, insisted there are no plans to sell either player, who have been linked in the media with moves away from Anfield.
"We don't need the money," Broughton said, although he added that should either player leave, the revenue would be invested in new signings.
Hodgson added that he had not discussed what funding would be available to him in the transfer market.
"It's not the right time to talk about that," he said. "It's a bit disappointing that on your first day it's matters of money that take precedence over football matters.
"I took the job because I wanted to be manager of Liverpool Football Club, to work with the players ... to benefit from the fan base and the support for the club."
Hodgson had also been linked with England following the team's dismal second-round exit from the World Cup, but he denied there was a possibility of his holding out to become Fabio Capello's successor.
"When this job was first discussed with me there was no question of there being any change in the England manager set-up," he said.
"I don't expect there to be a change but there was never a question of whether I should hold on for something different because I wanted to be here."
Benitez left Liverpool to join Inter Milan after the 2009 Premier League runner-up slumped to seventh place last season, which meant it missed qualification for the Champions League.
Instead, Liverpool still has to come through qualification in July and August for the Europa League group stages.
Club captain Gerrard backed Hodgson as the right man to succeed Benitez.
"The club have made a good appointment in Roy Hodgson," Gerrard said. "He is hugely experienced and I believe he is the right man for Liverpool."
"I think it's been worth the wait and I'm sure he's just keen now to get on with it and start to quickly put in place his plans for the new season."
Hodgson saved Fulham from relegation in 2008 and guided the west London club to an all-time best seventh place a season later.
Fulham dipped to 12th this season but made it to only the second major final in the club's 131-year history before losing 2-1 to Atletico Madrid in Hamburg.
Benitez's six years in charge at Anfield ended on June 3.
In a 34-year coaching career, Hodgson has had spells in England, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Switzerland and Italy, where he was twice in charge of Inter.
Hodgson has also coached Finland, the United Arab Emirates and Switzerland, which he guided to the 1994 World Cup in the United States. He has also acted as a technical adviser to UEFA, European football's governing body.
But after coaching stints with Fulham and Blackburn, Liverpool will be his first job at a major top-flight club in his own country and only his second in Europe after Inter.
Benitez took Liverpool to the Champions League title in his first season but failed to win the English league title the club last won in 1990. Manchester United has now equaled its record of 18 league titles.
Last season's seventh-place finish was Liverpool's worst for 11 years and a key factor in Benitez's departure.
Hodgson's anticipated appointment had already received a mixed response on Merseyside, with many fans demanding a higher profile name or someone with deeper roots at Liverpool.
Aston Villa's Martin O'Neill and former Germany coach Juergen Klinsmann were linked with the job, while former manager Kenny Dalglish, who currently works with Liverpool's academy, expressed an interest in taking charge for a second time.
Broughton said, however, that Dalglish had never been considered for the role.
Once Hodgson's appointment was made official, many fans and former players welcomed his arrival and suggested this could be the start of a new era at Liverpool.
"After having foreign managers in Gerard Houllier and Rafa Benitez, it seems there was a thought process of going back to British," former Liverpool captain Phil Thompson said. "The club needs a steadying influence and Roy will provide that. He's done a fantastic job at Fulham and has a wealth of experience having managed all over Europe."
American co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr., who bought Liverpool three years ago, have put the club up for sale after a public fallout over the running of the club. Liverpool is now heavily in debt.
Broughton said no bids had been received for the club at this stage.
"We're still in the middle of that process," Broughton said. "There have not been any offers. We wouldn't have expected any at this stage (but) there are a number of interested parties.
"There is no specific deadline on it. We are hopeful that a deal can get done before the end of the transfer window (in August)."
Last month, the club announced a pretax loss of 16 million pounds ($23.5 million; 18.5 million euros) for last season, a steep decline from a healthy profit the year before.
