Maxi Rodriguez admits he will never forget the ovation from the Anfield crowd after his “best moment in a Liverpool shirt”.
Maxi netted the first hat-trick of his career for the club with three close-range finished in the 5-0 home romp against Birmingham City on Saturday.
It doubled the total for the season for the Argentine, who was making his first outing in more than a month after being recalled in the absence of the injured Andy Carroll.
Maxi left the field to rapturous applause from the home supporters when substituted for David Ngog a minute from time.
And the midfielder said: “It’s definitely my best moment in a Liverpool shirt.
"I think it’s more special because we scored a lot of goals, it was my first hat-trick for the club and also because I scored it at Anfield in front of our fans.
“I have to say that it was also a great moment when I was substituted in the last minute.
“The whole ground gave me a reception I will never forget and Kenny also said he was very happy with my performance, so I have to be delighted with what was a perfect day for me.”
Maxi’s treble helped Liverpool on their way to a biggest league win since September 2009 while closing the gap on fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur to just three points.
The Londoners have a game in hand, but have still to visit Anfield and must also travel to title-chasing Chelsea and FA Cup finalists Manchester City in their final five fixtures.
And Maxi added: “It is definitely a great feeling to score a hat-trick but it is not just about me scoring the goals.
“The team played really well and that is the most important thing.
“Tottenham’s draw means we have closed the gap to fifth place and we still have a chance of qualifying for Europe. We will keep fighting right until the end and hopefully we can finish the season in a positive way.”
Carroll failed to overcome the knee injury suffered during the second half of the dramatic 1-1 draw at Arsenal six days earlier.
The 22-year-old now faces a race against time to be fit for Sunday’s visit of previous club Newcastle United, from whom he was bought by Liverpool in January for a club record £35million.
But Magpies skipper Kevin Nolan is hopeful his former team-mate will be available – so he can give him a boot!
“The big man missed out because of an injury, and he doesn’t know how long he will be out,” said Nolan. “Hopefully, he’ll be back so I can kick him!
“I don’t know if I want him to play or not. I do so I can kick him, but I don’t want to him to play because of the threat he can pose.
“He’s clicking into gear, and he’ll be desperate to play against us. You will see the best of him next year.”
Newcastle haven’t won at Anfield since 1994, but boyhood Liverpool fan Nolan – who could also miss the game with a niggling groin problem – believes Alan Pardew’s side are in the form to repeat their 3-1 win when the teams met at St James’ Park in December.
“Records are there to be broken – we don’t worry about anything like that,” said the midfielder.
“This is a different team to ones that have gone there in the past. There’s no better place to play your football away from home.
“We’ve been brilliant away from home this season, and we’re full of confidence.
“They had a fantastic result and they’re full of confidence, so it’ll make for an entertaining game.”
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