JAY Rodriguez admits he is thriving under the management of Mauricio Pochettino.

Rodriguez produced his most dynamic performance in a Saints shirt against Liverpool – capped by the brilliant third Saints goal.

The summer signing from Burnley said: “I’ve got a little bit more belief in myself and the gaffer, full credit to him, he’s given me a bit of freedom to go and play and express myself.

“He’s said that to everyone and you can see by the way we’ve played that he’s had a massive effect on us. Everyone knows how to play – we’re pressing high and don’t give anyone respect. “The belief we’ve got is fantastic and we’ve just got to carry it on. We feel we shouldn’t be where we are. We’re more than good enough to beat any team and want to be higher.”

Rodriguez’s solo goal saw him pick up the ball in the centre circle and then embark on a run that took him past Lucas Leiva and Martin Skrtel before beating Brad Jones at the second attempt.

“I decided to drive forward and got a little bit more space than I thought I would,” he said. “Then I got a little bit of luck from the palm down – and I’m chuffed to bits!

“We stuck to the game plan and it’s another massive win, one we felt we deserved which is the best thing about it, against a great Liverpool side that has great players.”

Rodriguez was elated at the final whistle but was disappointed not to score in the first half, when he hooked over from inside the penalty area during a period of Saints dominance. He admitted: “We were disappointed [at half-time], with the way we played we could’ve been more ahead. I should’ve put my chance away and was a bit disappointed with that. It put us in check.”

Saints are not in action again until Easter Saturday, when they host Chelsea.

Does Rodriguez believe two more wins will be enough to stay up?

“We’d like to think that, but we’re just going to concentrate on the next game. We’ll have a look at Chelsea and work out how to go against them and hopefully do what we did today. “Chelsea have great players and are a great team but we’ve got to concentrate on ourselves and believe we’re more than good enough to go out and get another result.”