Allen: You can't ask for any more than that
Joe Allen hailed the efforts of the youngsters who helped Liverpool secure a place in the fourth round of the FA Cup courtesy of a 3-0 win over Exeter City at Anfield on Wednesday.
The Welshman was an experienced head among a starting XI largely comprised of Academy graduates, and joined Sheyi Ojo and Joao Carlos Teixeira in bagging a goal to knock the Grecians out at the second attempt.
After the match, Allen declared himself impressed with the performances from his youthful colleagues and underlined the importance of first-team football to their development.
He told Liverpoolfc.com: "You can't ask for any more than that. [It was an] inexperienced team but, I think they showed in the first leg, they've got the ability to get through the tie.
"We made things comfortable for ourselves tonight, so credit to all the lads.
"First-team experience is so vital for any young player so for the lads to get the opportunity to go out there, especially at home in front of a packed house at Anfield, and play so well and get through the tie was great for everyone.
"We look forward now to the next round."
The Reds' win over Paul Tisdale's team means they are still in the hunt for the FA Cup, Europa League and League Cup entering the business end of the season.
And Allen is excited by the prospect of the battle for silverware that awaits Jürgen Klopp and his charges.
He added: "We've got a foot in all the competitions and that's what you want as players, you want to be fighting on all fronts.
"Hopefully we can build a bit of momentum now in the second half of the season and let's see what happens."
Allen's fellow goalscorer Ojo was, unsurprisingly, also delighted with a memorable Anfield debut.
The 18-year-old etched his name into the Liverpool history books by becoming the club's youngest ever FA Cup scorer thanks to a fine curled finish in the second half.
Reflecting on the goal, Ojo enthused: "It was amazing, honestly. I haven't got many words at the moment!
"I'm just happy that I could impact on the game and we could get the result to go through to the next round.
"It was a nice goal, a nice moment for me and obviously I'm really happy.
"Now, the main focus is move onto the next game, keep working hard, and if I get my opportunity again hopefully I can do well."
The winger also had kind words for his manager Klopp for giving so many young players another chance to impress in this competition.
"I think it's really important that the manager has given faith to us and he believes in all the youngsters, that we can come into it and do well and help the team," he explained.
"I think that's given us a real boost and we played well, much better today compared to the first [game].
"We got through and obviously everyone's happy, so we move onto the next game now."