Simon targets cause to join celebrations
Simon Mignolet's professionalism demanded that he watched joyous Liverpool scenes from afar at the weekend, but the goalkeeper hopes a trip to Wembley can allow him to join in soon.
With the Reds nearing a narrow away victory over Aston Villa on Saturday, substitute Rickie Lambert swept a precise finish into the far corner from the box's edge to seal a 2-0 scoreline.
What followed was pure passion, involving the players and the travelling fans, as the No.9 surged to the visiting supporters, quickly backed up by teammates piling into the mass celebration.
At the other end of the field and unable to vacate his position even at such a stirring moment was Mignolet, who steadfastly remained in situ to ensure a second consecutive clean sheet.
As he previewed Liverpool's Capital One Cup semi-final, first leg against Chelsea this evening, though, the Belgian stopper revealed a scenario in which he would rush to participate.
The No.22 told Liverpoolfc.com: "You want to join in. I'm not a character who gets carried away too much. But you know at that moment in time that you have won the game, so you want to be with the rest of the team.
"But you are doing your job until the last whistle of the game; you keep thinking about making sure you keep a clean sheet. It's very difficult, especially at the end of the game when you are 2-0 up.
"I've seen things on YouTube about 'keepers who go over to celebrate with the team and then get injured on the way or on their way back, or even get back into the goal too late because the kick has already been taken.
"I'll try to keep myself steady until after the game and then celebrate with the rest of the lads. It's difficult. But we celebrated in the dressing room afterwards, don't worry about that.
"Let's hope we get to the final of a cup and make sure we score for 3-0 or 4-0 in the last minute of the game, and I'll be sure to get up there."
Attempting to block those aspirations in the next week will be Barclays Premier League leaders Chelsea - the Reds' opponents for a two-legged last-four tie that gets underway tonight.
Jose Mourinho's charges dismantled Swansea City in their last outing to secure a five-point advantage in the division, and therefore travel to Merseyside in fine fettle.
But Mignolet insists that Liverpool should try to focus on the qualities within Brendan Rodgers' ranks and embrace the opportunities lying ahead in the weeks and months to come.
"They are a very good team - they have got lots of individuals who can turn a game with quality," was the 26-year-old's assessment of the Londoners.
"But we have to look at ourselves and make sure we prepare in the best way we can, making sure we put in the shift and performance we want to.
"There's no point in looking too much to the opposition; obviously we're aware of their threats but we have to make sure that we put something across ourselves.
"As a football player, you want to win trophies and you want to win games. This is the first opportunity to get into a final, over two fixtures.
"We want to move on and get to Wembley; everybody will try to do their best to get into that final. Then there are lots of other things to play for.
"The FA Cup is coming up at the weekend, we're still in the Europa League and we can still do a lot of things in the league. We just have to keep working hard. The next game is the most important one."
The 'keeper produced a composed and alert display at Villa Park to clock up back-to-back shut-outs and help Liverpool extend their undefeated streak in all competitions to eight games.
Mignolet was the subject of considerable praise from the manager after the clash, with Rodgers buoyed by the manner in which the Belgian handled bombardment of his area.
Providing a modest response, he said: "It's always nice to hear that, but I'm one of those who always think about the team and winning.
"Getting the victory and three points away from home is the important thing - you do that with the whole team. Everybody worked really hard, battled throughout the whole game and fought for the result.
"It's always nice to get a few wins going and get a bit of momentum. The confidence is there with the lads, but everybody is really thinking about the next game rather than what has been and the games we have won in the past.
"We're looking forward; there is still a lot to play for this season. We have got some big games coming up and everybody wants to do well in those as well."