Rickie's cup journey: From fan to first XI
Rickie Lambert was amongst the Kopites dancing in the Wembley aisles when Liverpool lifted the League Cup in 2012 – and tonight he intends to fire the Reds to a winning start in the same competition.
The 32-year-old was a Southampton player when Kenny Dalglish's side edged past Cardiff City after a nail-biting penalty shootout to secure the club's record eighth triumph in the tournament.
At the time, Lambert could only have dreamed of donning the famous Liverpool red; however, this evening he'll be handed a full debut for his beloved club under the floodlights at Anfield.
Brendan Rodgers confirmed on Monday that the Kirkby lad will start against Middlesbrough - and Lambert admits he's been aching for an opportunity to do so after four substitute appearances so far.
"Obviously I enjoy playing for Liverpool, but I've been desperate for my first start," he told Liverpoolfc.com.
"I try to go into each and every game with the same mentality, whether I'm starting or not. I never used to do that. When I used to be a substitute, it was hard to get into the same mentality. But I think I'm better at that now. I'll be really looking forward to it.
"Everyone's ambition here is to win a trophy this season. We're trying to win every trophy, but we're definitely trying to bring home at least one. It starts in the League Cup tonight and we'll be trying to win it.
"I was at Wembley watching the final [in 2012]. I managed to get a ticket and go down there. It was a very good day.
"Over the years, the club has become used to bringing trophies in, but it had been a while before the last one. Hopefully it's not going to be too long before we bring the next trophy in. Hopefully there's more to come."
Lambert was powerless to prevent the Reds from slipping to a sobering 3-1 defeat against West Ham United in the Barclays Premier League on Saturday evening after taking to the Upton Park turf as a 75th-minute substitute.
The reversal was a disappointing end to a testing seven-day period for Rodgers' side, who were stunned by Aston Villa at Anfield in the league and edged past Ludogorets Razgrad in the Champions League.
While the visit of Boro signifies a fourth encounter in the space of just 10 days, Lambert insists the timing of tonight's clash is important, as it offers an immediate chance to regain confidence ahead of Saturday's Merseyside derby against Everton.
"We want to rectify the performance and the result from West Ham," said the Reds' No.9. "Luckily enough we now have a game three days later and that's always the best way.
"We'll be desperate to get out and put in a good performance for the fans and most importantly be in the hat for the next round.
"It's important to get a good start to the season - and we haven't done too badly - but the game against West Ham was disappointing. We're as disappointed as the fans.
"We want to rectify that as quickly as possible and get back on track, so it's brilliant to have a game so quickly after Saturday. Hopefully it will give the fans a little bit more optimism going into the next game [against Everton].
"We've got to start well tonight. We have to start the way Liverpool should start - the way we're renowned for starting. If we do that, we'll give anyone a good game.
"If we don't, if we start off poorly, then Middlesbrough will punish us. We totally understand this and we've got full respect for them. But we've got to focus on ourselves now and perform the way we know we can perform."