There was always a general consensus that Liverpool were going to have to show a similar level of patience as they did in Sunday's Merseyside derby when they welcomed Villarreal to Anfield.
And now, as then, it was Mohamed Salah's creativity which came to the fore as they broke down their stubborn opponents.
Two goals in two minutes in the opening stages of the second half eventually saw the Reds take control of the tie against their Spanish opponents, with Pervis Estupinian inadvertently deflecting a Jordan Henderson cross into his own net for the opener.
The second arrived just over a minute later, with Salah's expert control and clever pass feeding Sadio Mane, who had only just managed to keep himself onside before he poked home to send Anfield wild.
Salah was surrounded by five Villarreal players as he received the ball from Trent Alexander-Arnold, before turning and playing a pass through the legs of centre-back Pau Torres - who is supposedly a Manchester United transfer target - and finding the deadly Mane.
Salah was turning creator for Liverpool for the third time in a week, and he followed up his assist for Andy Robertson against Everton with his clever pass to Mane.
Prior to that, the Egyptian also set up a goal against Manchester United last week before going on to score twice himself.
Speaking earlier this week, Salah said he had been seeking to improve his assist record for the Reds.
"I saw my game improving, but the season before last I had 19 goals and 10 assists in the Premier League," he said.
"In my first season it was also 10 assists, so I'm always trying to score goals and give assists.
"That is always my game and this season I feel a lot of improvement with the ball, but I go back to what I said before. The most important thing is to help this team win trophies and I am trying to help to do that."
Giving assists is perhaps not what the Egyptian has often been known for in the past, with ex-Reds captain and manager Graeme Souness often labelling him "greedy" in front of goal.
“He’s the greediest player I’ve ever seen, he is," said Souness last week.
“He’s a great player but I have to say he’s the greediest player I’ve ever seen and whenever I watch him not passing I think of what [Kenny Dalglish] would be like if he wasn’t passing, I’d have to be in there separating them.
