Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers was over the moon for his players after their morale-boosting 2-1 win over Manchester City on Sunday.
Goals either side of the break from Jordan Henderson and Philippe Coutinho outshone Edin Dzeko's 25th-minute effort to give the Reds a stunning recoil from their penalty shootout disappointment at Besiktas in the Europa League on Thursday night.
Rodgers spoke of the way his players rallied after a tough trip to Istanbul and was delighted to see them produce such a performance against the reigning Premier League champions.
"I have got to take my hat off to the players. We got back at half four in the early hours of Friday morning and by the time the players got to bed, it was probably about six o'clock," he told Sky Sports.
"They have had to sleep all of Friday. We have done some work yesterday preparing for the game, and to come out and play like that, how they have today, just relentless they were.
"To restrict them (City) to one shot on target - and that's a top team - I thought the players were incredible today, so they deserve all the praise that they get for the performance and the result."
