'Simon's saves can be equally crucial'
Simon Mignolet's shot-stopping ability has been aligned with the prolific exploits of Liverpool's attacking stars in terms of importance during the Reds' Barclays Premier League run-in.
Brendan Rodgers takes his fourth-place team to Southampton on Saturday evening as the business end of a pulsating 2013-14 campaign looms into view with just 11 fixtures left on the schedule.
As the Reds seek to reverse their defeat by the Saints on home soil in September, and make amends for losing at St Mary's 12 months ago, the potential for Mignolet to prove crucial has been reiterated.
Indeed, goalkeeping coach John Achterberg believes the Belgian's reflexes and reactions could be as influential on the team's success as the creativity and clinical finishing at the other end of the pitch.
The Dutchman spoke to Liverpoolfc.com earlier this week and the full chat is available as a Q&A and in video form for LFC TV Online subscribers below.
Was there anything that could have been done from a goalkeeping point of view that would have made the victory over Swansea less of a close-fought encounter?
Not really, to be honest. You always think communication with each other could be better in the team in general. The goalkeeper is one part in that, so hopefully we can improve on that.
It seemed that Simon was powerless to prevent any of the three goals that we let in - what has his mood been like in training?
His mood is good, he is working hard and he obviously wants to keep the ball out of the net. That's what he's trying to do in training and he's working well.
The win over Swansea took us six points clear in fourth place; what kind of boost has that given to the squad?
It is good, but we need to look at the long game. We basically need to try to keep winning every game, keep plugging away and see where it takes us.
There are 11 games to go and plenty of targets have been set for the team. Is there a figure you would like Simon to achieve before the end of the season?
Not really. If he keeps a clean sheet, then obviously it gives us more chance to win the game. That's what he tries every game and that's what we'll try to do on Saturday again.
How important can Simon be for the rest of the season, and how important will he be in Liverpool's push for success?
Of course, goalkeepers are always important, making saves to keep the team in the game. He has done that on a number of occasions this season with good saves. That is what he wants to keep doing.
Could his shot-stopping be as important as the goals that we score during the run-in?
Yes, of course - shot-stopping is very important, as is goalscoring. With that combination, if you do both very well then you have a good chance to win games.
Southampton are up next. We were 2-0 down inside half an hour at St Mary's last year - what has been said about that game and what lessons can be learned?
We know Southampton have a very good team and an aggressive style of attacking, which we need to prepare for. The boss has been working with the team on that to try to let them know what is expected and what we have to deal with. Hopefully, we can deal with it and will be well prepared.
Southampton are the only team to win at Anfield this season; what makes them such a threat?
They have some quality players - Lallana and the big man up front. They have improved as a team over the last few years. We know what they do and we have to prepare now to make sure we come out on the right side of the game.
Does dealing with Rickie Lambert affect your preparations for the game?
You work on different aspects with different players against big strikers, in terms of what they do and dealing with high balls. We do different things in training to make sure that we can think as goalkeepers about what could happen.