BR: Confidence and practice are his key

The Brazilian revealed earlier this week he's been working hard on trying to improve his statistics in front of goal, having seen several attempts foiled by opposing goalkeepers in recent matches.

Rodgers admitted he's spoken with Coutinho about his finishing and is confident that the playmaker can embark on a scoring spree.

The manager told Liverpoolfc.com: "It's a mixture, really. It's a mixture of confidence and practice.

"I think he's got himself into some great positions - but I spoke to him and said that maybe sometimes he tries to be too accurate. What's important is you hit the target.

"He's a wonderful player. He opens the game up for us at times, he's a player that loves to have the ball and allows you to continue with your game, and he puts defenders on the back foot.

"He's a kid that works very, very hard at his game. I'm sure once one goes in, he can go on a little run of goals."

Coutinho has largely operated in a role on the left of Liverpool's front three this season, though Rodgers insists he still has plenty of freedom to move in and influence the game from his preferred central position.

"He does play a lot of his game centrally, anyway," said the boss. "Even when he plays from the side, his game is based around coming inside because that's where he can affect the pitch. It just all depends on the tactics involved in the game.

"Sometimes he starts from a wide position and drifts inside, and sometimes he starts on the inside because that might be an area we can exploit behind the back of the midfield of the opponent.

"Whatever position he's in, he'll always drift into that central area anyway - that's something we cater for when we defend."

Watch the video here »

Coutinho celebrates one year as a Liverpool player at the end of January, and Rodgers feels he can look back on his first 12 months at Anfield with a great degree of satisfaction.

He added: "He's an outstanding talent. I'm not sure what price he'd be now, considering what we brought him in for a year ago.

"He's still got a lot of development to make and a lot of hard work ahead, but he's shown to be a great signing for us."

Coutinho will be aiming to help Liverpool record a ninth consecutive home victory later today when Aston Villa arrive at Anfield in the Barclays Premier League.

The Villans have won just one of their last eight matches, and though they succumbed to a 2-1 loss to Arsenal in midweek, they finished strongly against the Gunners.

"I think it's the type of team Aston Villa are," reflected Rodgers. "They play a lot of the time on the counter-attack; they've got great pace and they break forward very quickly.

"It [Villa's game with Arsenal] was similar to the game we had with them at the beginning of the season where we more than dominated the first half, but they came out with a renewed vigour for the second half. We then had to defend resolutely and ended up getting the result.

"For Arsenal, it was pretty much a similar game. They dominated the first half, but Aston Villa came out and put on a really good performance in the second half and unfortunately just lost.

"It'll be a difficult game. Aston Villa are a team that have been better away from home because of that counter-attack ability. We know it'll be tough for us."

[OTPA_WIDGET_CONTENT]

Villa have bolstered their ranks this week with the signing of Grant Holt from Wigan Athletic on loan.

The forward could form an imposing strike partnership with Christian Benteke, but Rodgers is confident Liverpool will be able to nullify their physical threat.

"You come up against different teams, different styles and different systems," he said.

"Benteke is a big, strong boy and has shown in these last couple of seasons that he's a real handful. He got a goal the other night and that will probably increase his confidence.

"And Grant Holt scored at Anfield for Norwich and I'm sure that as a player that has been in the Championship, he's relishing the chance to come back to the Premier League. He's a very good player."

Meanwhile, the manager has spoken of his gratitude to Liverpool fans for the support they've given the team this season, insisting they are a key reason behind the Reds' impressive campaign.

He said: "They've been absolutely magnificent. They're a huge part of what we're doing.

"We saw the travelling Kop away at Stoke at the weekend, the noise and support they give the team and the players is immense. That's something that we'll never take for granted here.

"The support, where they travel and how far they come to give us that support makes me really proud. Whether we're at home or away, that vocal support is really unique."