Boss: There has to be that togetherness
Brendan Rodgers hailed the spirit of his Liverpool players after they triumphed spectacularly against Manchester City on an emotional afternoon at Anfield.
The final whistle sounded, the stands shook with euphoria - and the players in red sprinted from all corners of the pitch to converge on their captain, Steven Gerrard.
The 33-year-old was tearful - overcome with pride and relief - as his teammates clamoured to congratulate him and the Kop roared its approval of a scintillating 3-2 win.
Liverpool had led the game 2-0 following a vintage first-half display which saw Manuel Pellegrini's men sliced apart in the same manner Everton, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur were at Anfield.
Raheem Sterling and Martin Skrtel both notched; however, City showed their quality after the break, hitting back through David Silva and an own-goal from Glen Johnson.
But the Reds were relentless and, after weathering a spell of serious City pressure, Philippe Coutinho rocketed low into the corner of Joe Hart's net and pandemonium ensued.
"It was a wonderful game of football," Rodgers told reporters after the match. "I think it had everything. An incredible amount of credit goes to the players and the supporters today. Our game began on the way in. It was totally unique what we received coming in on the coach.
"That gave us the energy before we even stepped onto the field. The performance level of the players today was sensational. To dominate like we did in the first half and to play with that energy and that intelligence and tactical idea in the game was remarkable.
"I've heard a few people talk about the emotion afterwards, but I haven't seen it. All I know is the group is very tight. We've fostered a real closeness here in our spirit and that's improving all the time.
"You need that. If you're going to win anything or challenge for anything you need to have more than just quality. It's about more than just rolling out good players.
"There has to be a bond, there has to be a cause for which to fight and you can see clearly that intensity and that togetherness of the team. Along with the supporters, it's very strong at the moment."
Sterling broke the deadlock in stunning fashion, pivoting one way then another when hemmed in by City defenders, before stroking into the gap between Hart and the Kop net for 1-0.
Skrtel rose in trademark fashion to power the second and Liverpool were in dreamland. However, all the good work was undone when City rocked the home crowd with a five-minute assault and two sobering strikes.
Undeterred, Rodgers' side managed to conjure something extra in order to fashion a magical third from Coutinho to clinch a precious victory, which moves them seven points clear of City at the top of the table.
"We had the mentality to go on and win the game," said the boss. "That was important for us. You see the quality that they have; they can score from anywhere.
"And getting pegged back to 2-2, maybe when I first came in here, we might have gone on to lose the game. But it tells you everything about the determination and the resilience in the team. We dusted ourselves down and went again and the level of some of our football today was so good.
"Raheem's goal was brilliant; Luis Suarez showed great strength and Raheem was playing at the back of the midfield so that he could make those penetrating runs in behind their back four. He got in and to make the yard against top players, shift it and finish with that composure, was astounding really.
"We don't necessarily demand goals from the strikers, we just demand that they give their best. Some days they have off days, but they are working for the cause, which is the most important thing. We have other players and creators in the team, with some of our imagination."