Borini: We'll commit ourselves to this cup
Fabio Borini hailed the mentality of his Liverpool teammates and declared himself pleased with the part he played in the Reds' dramatic 2-1 Capital One Cup victory over Swansea City on Tuesday night.
Borini made only his second start of the season against his former club in the fourth-round clash - and with four minutes of normal time remaining, he conjured a stunning pass for Mario Balotelli to finish in front of the Kop.
Striding forward down the right flank with Jonjo Shelvey for company, Borini glanced into the middle and curled between four white shirts into the path of Balotelli, who swiped the ball past Gerhard Tremmel to make it 1-1.
There was to be further drama at Anfield, where Liverpool had stared defeat in the face just half an hour earlier, thanks to Marvin Emnes' brilliantly taken volley, on the spin, in front of the travelling supporters.
With seconds remaining, however, Philippe Coutinho arced a free-kick towards the far post - beyond Tremmel and his defensive ranks - to where Dejan Lovren was arriving to bury the cross and seal the win.
Borini joined jubilant teammates in celebration near a rocking Main Stand - and afterwards, from within the confines of the same terrace, home to the iconic Anfield tunnel, the 23-year-old took pride in the way his team fought to the bitter end.
"I think we played really well from the kick-off until the last seconds of the game and we scored at the last possible attempt," he told Liverpoolfc.com.
"It was the players who were not playing so much or so often, like myself - but we knew that when we got the chance to play, we needed to make sure that we took the chance and we showed that.
"I'm very pleased with my performance - not just for the assist, but for my performance after a long time not playing. Apart from me, all the other players played magnificent and we showed that we can play as a team."
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The Reds now advance to the quarter-final stage of the League Cup - a tournament they won for a record eighth time when Steven Gerrard climbed the Wembley steps in February 2012 to hoist the trophy aloft following a shootout victory over Cardiff City.
Rodgers' side will learn their opponents for the final eight of the competition tonight - and Borini insists the outcome of the draw will be a significant one for the squad, who are determined to get their hands on silverware this season.
"It's very big because the fans and ourselves deserve a trophy because of all that we have done in the three years that Brendan has been here," said the forward.
"I think we really need to push into the final steps [of the competition]. The wins always give confidence, but the way we play football is probably the most positive thing.
"We showed today that we are a very strong team, mentally, because we kept playing the way that we had started. At the end, we got the prize and we are so happy for the result and to go on to the quarter-finals."