Borini excited by Europa level
Fabio Borini is relishing the opportunity to challenge for the Europa League title and believes the competition can be considered on a similar level to the Champions League.
The Italian enjoyed a brief taste of continental action during his time with Chelsea but the Reds' European campaign for this season, which begins in earnest at Young Boys tonight, is his first real chance to test his skills on that stage.
And the forward cannot wait to get started.
"I think it's a great competition to play because it's really close to the level of the Champions League," the 21-year-old told Liverpoolfc.com.
"I think it's got the same importance because at the end the champions will play against the champions of the Champions League, which is a great pleasure.
"It's a very good level because you can see it has got many teams that won the league as well or just came third."
Despite only arriving at Anfield during the summer, Borini will be among the more senior figures for the Group A meeting in Switzerland as Brendan Rodgers gives the younger players in his squad a chance to prove themselves.
The No.29 expects Young Boys to provide strong opposition and explained how preparing for a European fixture can be a different prospect to domestic football.
"It will be a hard test but even if it's a European game, we need to keep our style going in the same way," he continued.
"Not because you don't know the players, but probably because you've got less time to prepare for the game because it's a midweek match.
"You always have just one or two days to prepare for the game so you can work tactically and on key players, so that's probably the more difficult part.
"It will be different because it's not English football and something changes in European football. It will be a good test also for the young players that are here."
The Reds do not necessarily have to win the match, however, according to Borini, who was keen to focus on the side's short-term ambitions in a competition the club last won in 2001.
He added: "It's important [to win] but it's not fundamental, because we have got five more games. Even if we lose the first one, win the other three and draw two, we can still go through. It's important but it's not majorly key [to qualifying].
"It's difficult to say now, but any team now can have an opportunity to get to the end, so we've got the same percentage to go all the way as the others teams have."
A victory would be the perfect preparation for a massive Barclays Premier League clash with old foes Manchester United on Sunday, though, and Borini hopes the trip to Switzerland can provide confidence for the weekend.
"Positive results always give us confidence...they give anyone confidence. Even playing away, getting a point or a good performance would be a good start for the game on Sunday," the forward concluded.