The true measure of how a footballer has played will always come from within the dressing room — the environment where nobody can be kidded.
Harsh critics are found in a team's inner sanctum, so it gives you a sense of Thiago Alcantara's display against Manchester United that the initial reaction from some at Anfield, who have been around the game for years, was limited to three words: 'Oh my God.'
Thiago left the pitch to a standing ovation when he was substituted and wrapped in a bear hug by Jurgen Klopp.
Thiago left the pitch to a standing ovation when he was substituted against Man United
He ripped his shorts during the course of the game but his passing had torn United to shreds. It was, in some respects, the performance from him the stadium had waited two years to see.
Liverpool have made many signings during the Klopp era but few have been greeted with the fervour of this little magician's arrival.
The club's social media channels have never had more activity for a player unveiling than the day they announced Thiago in September 2020. The excitement stemmed from what he had done for Bayern Munich over seven years, winning everything there is to win.
The 31-year-old has the rare ability to play as if he has made time stand still.
He ripped his shorts during the course of the game but his passing had torn United to shreds
'I trained with him every day for five years — I know his quality,' Kingsley Coman, his old Bayern team-mate, told Sportsmail once. 'Liverpool are really lucky to have him. Thiago didn't score a lot of goals but what he did was as important as Robert Lewandowski, who scores 50.'
His success is no surprise. Thiago's father, Mazinho, was part of Brazil's triumphant World Cup squad in 1994, so football was not just a pastime when he and his younger brother, Rafinha, were little boys — it was a way of life.
Ronaldinho might have been Thiago's favourite player when growing up, and the influence of Pep Guardiola — who made him his first signing for
