Coutinho: Stevie's been exceptional
Philippe Coutinho has expressed his pleasure at sharing the same pitch with the likes of Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge, while singling out Steven Gerrard for special praise.
The Brazilian, who joined Liverpool last January, has revelled in his role of supplying the Barclays Premier League's most lethal strike partnership.
He also appreciates running the midfield with fellow countryman Lucas Leiva, plotting with 'all the fantastic players at the club,' and has been in awe of the skipper, who he believes enjoyed a brilliant 2013.
On Sturridge, who is nearing his comeback following an ankle injury suffered in November, Coutinho told Liverpoolfc.com: "Daniel is a fantastic player and it is always a pleasure to play alongside him, because he is always on the move trying to score goals.
"I believe he is back in training and I hope he gets back as quickly as possible because it will be better for us all."
When asked whether he shared the view of those suggesting Suarez is the best player in the world on current form, the 21-year-old responded: "Sure. He is making the difference and is scoring a lot of goals, creating loads of assists, and I hope he continues like that until the end of the season.
"As I said before, it is an honour to play with such a great player. Not only to play with him, but also with Gerrard, Lucas and all the other fantastic players that we have at our club.
"Gerrard this year has been exceptional."
The skipper has bagged six assists this season, which is the joint-third highest in the league, and also netted three goals - one of which was his 100th strike in England's top flight.
Those figures helped Liverpool end 2013 as the league's highest goalscorers for the year and Coutinho is hoping for even better over the next 12 months.
"We know that every match is a very difficult match but we have to improve all the time by doing our best and try to have a better year than last year," he added.