Brendan's Coutinho warning
Brendan Rodgers paid tribute to the performance of Philippe Coutinho in Saturday's 6-0 victory at Newcastle United – but stressed the importance of not putting too much expectation on the 20-year-old.
The Brazilian was in outstanding form at St James' Park, helping create two goals and turning in an exceptional all-round display.
It was a performance symptomatic of Coutinho's form since arriving from Inter Milan in January, though Rodgers is eager to avoid any unnecessary pressure being placed on the playmaker's shoulders.
The boss said: "We build up players in the country and put them on a pedestal and then quickly nail them down.
"He's had an outstanding performance and people can see why we brought him in. He's 20 years of age and fits the culture of what we're trying to do here.
"He's technically strong and he's a very humble boy. He works hard, you can see the effort in his game, the pressure, the intensity, so he fits in really well, but there's a long way to go.
"If you look at the stats you'll see I haven't eased him in gently. He's played nearly every game."
Meanwhile, Rodgers believes the victory in the north-east was a demonstration of the style of football he's trying to implement at Liverpool.
He added: "It was a wonderful demonstration of what we're trying to do here. Offensively, we passed the ball very well first and foremost and we scored six goals, but the balance in our game was good too.
"There was organisation, educated pressure on the ball and when the chances came we were ruthless. It was an outstanding performance.
"To go there and beat Newcastle 6-0 when you know the home team really needs the victory, I think it tells you more about our performance. The players were outstanding."