Lallana: The magician can take us far

The Brazilian secured three points for the Reds courtesy of a magnificent 25-yard curler with 15 minutes of an absorbing contest remaining at Anfield.

Earlier, Jordan Henderson's strike - of a similar sublime nature - had powered the hosts into an 11th-minute lead, only for Edin Dzeko to cancel it out midway through the first half with a neat finish.

However, Liverpool were relentless in their harrying of their opponents and duly clinched a deserved victory when Coutinho produced the latest in a string of acts of brilliance this season.

"That's a massive win for us," Lallana reflected immediately after the final whistle. "We've got momentum - they're the champions but we thoroughly deserved it.

"The lads have got fighting spirit and the little magician at the end came up with another wonderful goal. With players like that we're going to go far."

Lallana and Coutinho joined Raheem Sterling as Liverpool's front three in their now trademark 3-4-3 formation.

The shift in system has helped galvanise the Reds' season since mid-December and they're currently on an 11-game unbeaten run in the Barclays Premier League - a sequence that has elevated them into fifth place in the standings.

"Our system has been causing teams problems all year," continued Lallana. "The manager said keep patient and find the space. With players like Jordan and Joe sitting behind us, they were always going to find myself, Philippe and Raheem.

"We thought we were unlucky not to go in ahead at half-time. In the second half, we showed great character. A lot of the lads played extra-time in midweek and had a long flight but we've proved today we can keep going, keep fighting and keep believing."

Lallana's sentiments were echoed by Henderson, who skippered the team to success in the absence of the injured Steven Gerrard.

The midfielder revealed there was a collective determination within the dressing room to immediately bounce back from the disappointment of Thursday night, when they were eliminated from the Europa League by Besiktas on penalties in Istanbul.

Henderson said: "We knew it was an important game, especially after midweek when we were disappointed at going out of the Europa League. The next game was the most important one to put it right, and we knew that today.

"I felt as though we did that. We defended well, showed great character to stay in the game when it went to 1-1 and Philippe won it for us with another fantastic goal."

On the subject of goals, Henderson was typically modest when quizzed about his own effort - even though it'll ultimately go down as one of Liverpool's best of the season.

"It was just a break, I ran forward and Raheem found me," he smiled. "I took a touch inside and thought: 'Have a go.' Thankfully it went in!"

Next up for Liverpool is an Anfield clash with Burnley on Wednesday evening.

The Reds edged a hard-fought encounter against the Clarets at Turf Moor on Boxing Day, with a Raheem Sterling goal clinching a 1-0 success.

Henderson, therefore, knows Burnley will pose a stern test as Brendan Rodgers' side aim to maintain their impetus.

"We have just got to keep going now," he said. "Every game is as big as another. We've got another big game on Wednesday against Burnley and that will be tough for us, as we found out when we went there.

"They'll make it difficult but this result will give us great confidence. We've got momentum and we've just got to keep building and finish strongly."