Raheem hails 'magic' match-winner Phil
Not for the first time this season there was talk of a moment of magic from Philippe Coutinho as the dust settled on a night of drama for Liverpool in the FA Cup.
Raheem Sterling, who hit a late equaliser in Wednesday's fourth round replay against Bolton Wanderers, hailed his teammate's spontaneity in striking the sublime winner that carried the Reds through with a 2-1 win.
After a goalless draw at Anfield, Liverpool found themselves trailing Neil Lennon's charges at the Macron Stadium when Eidur Gudjohnsen converted from the penalty spot prior to the hour mark.
Bolton were reduced to 10 men when Neil Danns was shown a second yellow card; however, his dismissal prompted the home side to retreat further backwards towards their own goal in order to protect a slender lead.
Liverpool pressed and pressed, struck the woodwork and forged countless chances until finally the breakthrough arrived, Emre Can releasing Sterling, who slotted through the legs of Andrew Lonergan.
With extra-time fast approaching the scores remained locked; however, Coutinho cut inside and looped a dipping effort in off the crossbar to seal a memorable victory for Brendan Rodgers' side.
"Philippe has that magic to turn the game on its head and that's what he did tonight," Sterling told the BBC. "It was great individual skill and a great finish."
Can was the architect of Sterling's goal - an 86th-minute finish which brought relief and joy in equal measure to the travelling Kopites as a potential cup exit had loomed large.
Collecting the ball from Alberto Moreno, the versatile German strode forward and sycthed apart the Bolton ranks with a delicate lofted pass as Sterling's pace carried him through on goal.
"We had a few chances to put the game away, but we didn't take them. A few of those chances came to me," admitted Sterling. "So it was a great team effort to stick in the game and get the win at the end.
"When we went 1-0 down and we hit the woodwork so many times, I was thinking: 'It's not our day'. But I think the boys stuck in really well.
"I just saw the ball come over and saw that I was free. I watched the 'keeper and put it through his legs and I was happy to get on the scoresheet."
He added: "The most important thing was to win the game and that's what we've done. We can go on to Crystal Palace now [in the fifth round] and hopefully nick a win there."