Thiago Alcantara was playing fantasy football against Manchester City.Liverpool reached their first FA Cup final in ten years courtesy of a 3-2 win over the Citizens and the magical contributions of Thiago at the heart of their midfield played a major role in the triumph.While the Reds were less coherent in a second-half where Jack Grealish and Bernardo Silva found the net, there could be no denying the efficiency of Jurgen Klopp's men in the opening 45 minutes.
Thiago shines vs Man City
And the culmination of Liverpool's majestic play under the Wembley arch saw them race into a 3-0 lead just before half-time with Sadio Mane firing a stinging volley past Zack Steffen at his near post.
It was a slick and silky team move from the Reds across the board, but it was typical of their play in north London that the crucial creative spark would come from the feet of Thiago.
It was the Spaniard's delicious floated pass into the path of Mane that ultimately forged the winning goal, impudently placing the cherry atop one of his finest performances in the famous red jersey.
Thiago's stunning pass at Wembley
However, what makes Thiago's FA Cup display all the more impressive is that his gorgeous assist wasn't even his finest pass that afternoon.
Rather, it was an outrageous outside-of-the-boot switch to Mohamed Salah that had Liverpool fans drooling the most, regardless of the fact it didn't directly lead to a goal like his previous effort.
The 31-year-old had Riyad Mahrez chasing shadows by killing the ball dead on his chest, before swinging the ball across the Wembley turf with a flick of his right boot as if it was absolutely nothing.
Naturally, the end product wasn't so much as an inch wide of its intended target, perfectly landing in Salah's path and making for a Steven Gerrard-like masterstroke that you can check out down below:
Pure, pure genius.
Thiago's individual highlights
But like we say, that was the brightest spark of an entire fireworks display in which Thiago inspired Liverpool to yet another major final, so be sure to sink your teeth into his individual highlights right here:
So, it's fair to say that Thiago played pretty darn well.
The brilliance of Thiago
While it might have taken the Spanish wizard a season to settle in at Anfield after waving goodbye to Bayern Munich, it couldn't be any clearer now that he's adjusted to life on Merseyside.
And with his extraordinary passing helping to send Liverpool all the way to their first FA Cup final under Klopp, he might just have the chance to secure his next piece of silverware in England.
After all, if Liverpool are to make history and become the first English club to win the coveted quadruple, then you can bet that Thiago will have played a pivotal role in them doing so.