'His movement makes my life easy'
After wowing Liverpool supporters with his delightful assist for Daniel Sturridge against Newcastle last weekend, Brazilian midfielder Philippe Coutinho explained that the striker's off-the-ball ability makes all the difference.
Having already helped to create the Reds' second goal at St James' Park on Saturday, the 20-year-old released Sturridge for a straightforward finish with a lofted pass which dissected the home defence.
Coutinho was afforded a licence to roam behind the England international by Brendan Rodgers and the No.10 has already observed positive signs from the fledgling relationship.
"He is an excellent player and very intelligent. He has a lot of technique and scores a lot of goals - I am very pleased to play alongside him," Coutinho told Liverpoolfc.com.
"Luis and Sturridge move a lot and that makes things easier for the player with the ball - we can put the ball in the empty space and I think that makes things easier for the player that plays behind them.
"By playing with huge players like the ones we have at Liverpool I can learn a lot and I hope to be able to learn more every day to get better and better."
In total the former Inter Milan playmaker contributed significantly to three of Liverpool's six goals against the Magpies - a habit the Brazilian is keen to continue.
He added: "I believe the game was very important, all of the players played well and we achieved a very important result.
"I believe my performances have got better and I think it was my best game here. I hope that I can continue to improve.
"I love to create assists. When you play up front you want to create chances, either for yourself or your teammates, and score goals. I hope to help the team by doing this."
Coutinho has settled extremely quickly into life at Anfield, knocking in two goals in addition to his assists, and thanked compatriot Lucas Leiva for his support during the early stages.
"I appreciate his words and I hope that I can get even better by learning from him - because he's a very experienced player - as well as from my other teammates," said the midfielder.
