'Wonderful' Suso in derby contention
Suso Fernandez's "wonderful feet" and refusal to be floored by a lack of game time has been saluted by Brendan Rodgers.
The Liverpool manager was impressed by the 20-year-old's Capital One Cup cameo against Middlesbrough, in which he hit a sweet strike and slotted two penalties in a remarkable 14-13 shoot-out win following a 2-2 draw in extra-time.
The Spaniard's attacking intent injected effervescence into the side upon his introduction in the 98th minute. Rodgers savoured Suso's display, which he felt was reward for the starlet's work ethic.
The forward is now in contention to face Everton in Saturday's Merseyside Derby showdown.
"Young Suso was a player that when I first came in, he played quite a bit," the Reds boss said. "He's already experienced the derby in that first season away at Goodison and we've seen his impact from the other night.
"I was really pleased for him, because it's been difficult for him. We sent him out on loan to try and get games and experience.
"He has come in, put his head down over the course of pre-season and worked hard.
"He hasn't had a lot of game time and that's probably been difficult for him, but he's never shown it.
"He has got the same appetite in training. You saw his quality when he came on in the game, when the space opened up and even when it was tight, he had wonderful feet and wonderful technique.
"It was nice to see him score off his right foot and he's definitely one that comes into the reckoning."