Jordan Henderson hailed the 'footballing brain' of Philippe Coutinho after the Brazilian produced a moment of magic to down Blackburn Rovers and secure Liverpool's place in the FA Cup semi-finals.

Coutinho swapped passes with Henderson in the 70th minute of Wednesday's quarter-final replay at Ewood Park before surging towards the six-yard box and rifling beyond Simon Eastwood to net a crucial winner.

The 1-0 triumph means the Reds now return to Wembley for the first time in three years to face a last-four clash against Aston Villa on April 19, with a place in the Cup final up for grabs.

Henderson insists victory over Rovers will bring a huge injection of confidence to a Liverpool side that has been forced to endure back-to-back defeats against Manchester United and Arsenal in recent weeks.

And the vice-captain highlighted how a moment of individual brilliance from Coutinho was the difference on a testing night against Gary Bowyer's charges.  

"Philippe's got a great footballing brain and the easy bit is just giving him [the ball] and he's finished it fantastically well," Henderson told BT Sport following the final whistle.

"It was a great strike. That little bit of brilliance from him wins us the game and gives everyone a big lift. So hopefully now we can really kick on in our last seven games in the Premier League and also in the semi-final.

"It was a really important game for us today. I think everybody has been disappointed the last couple of weeks with performances and results. But I think we've shown great character tonight."

The Reds were forced to weather a late storm against Blackburn - and on several occasions they were indebted to the reflexes and composure of Simon Mignolet between the sticks, who kept the opposition at bay.

In injury time, Rovers goalkeeper Eastwood latched onto a corner inside the Liverpool penalty area, spun and lashed a shot through a crowd of players, but there was Mignolet to gather the strike at the second attempt.

"I couldn't believe it," said Henderson when asked about Eastwood's late effort. "It just fell to him and he's hit it quite well and it's got through a lot of bodies. So Simon's done well to get down and hold it.

"We knew to come here would be tough for us and that they would make it difficult. But from start to finish, I thought we were brilliant. I thought we controlled the game.

"Obviously towards the end, when we go 1-0 up, they're sort of chucking everything at us, but we defended fantastically. We go to Wembley against Villa and I'm sure it will be a tough game, because they're a good side. It gives everyone a lift."

Liverpool were without Steven Gerrard, Emre Can and Martin Skrtel for the tie due to suspension - and after just 27 minutes in the clash, Mamadou Sakho was forced to withdraw due to injury.

Kolo Toure came on in his place to slot into a back-four which also included Dejan Lovren and Glen Johnson - players who have found game time limited in recent weeks, yet defenders who were solid when it mattered.

"We've had suspensions and injuries over the last couple of weeks, but we've dealt with it really well," said Henderson. "The people who have come in have done a great job.

"I thought when Kolo came on he was immense at the back, especially towards the end. Dejan was brilliant. So it was a great performance and it gives everyone a lift now. We can really kick on to the end of the season."