A proud Conor Hourihane took the sight of Florian Wirtz, Hugo Ekitke and Ryan Gravenberch coming off the Liverpool bench as a sign of just how hard his Barnsley players pushed them.
But despite the English champions naming a strong side and bench, Hourihane felt Dominic Szoboszlai betrayed a tinge of "disrespect" Adam Phillips penalised to score from.
"I'm really proud," he said. "I thought the lads were outstanding to stick in the game until the very end.
"Liverpool had to bring on every superstar that they had on the bench to make sure that they got over the line.
"I thought what the lads did - the discipline out of possession, the gameplan that we put together to make it as difficult as possible, the lads did that to a T.
"We got a little bit tired towards the end and conceded that third and fourth.
"I felt like the (final) scoreline we didn't really deserve, but overall I thought our lads were outstanding."
PRIDE: Barnsley coach Conor Hourihane (Image: Carl Recine/Getty Images)placeholder image
PRIDE: Barnsley coach Conor Hourihane (Image: Carl Recine/Getty Images)
Barnsley headed against a post through Davis Keillor-Dunn in the opening minute and were undaunted by tremendous first-half strikes, hitting back when Phillips pounced on some lacksadaisical defending by Szoboszlai.
"I thought they needed an unbelievable strike to settle them down a little bit," reflected Hourihane. "If that (Keillor-Dunn header) goes in, maybe it can turn out to be a little bit different.
"But even with that not going in, I thought like the way we handled ourselves, the occasion under the lights at Anfield,, the hunger and desire that the lads showed to go long spells throughout the game.
"They've got to take big confidence from that.
PENALTY APPEAL: Reyes Cleary goes down after a challenge by Dominik Szoboszlai (Image: Carl Recine/Getty Images)placeholder image
PENALTY APPEAL: Reyes Cleary goes down after a challenge by Dominik Szoboszlai (Image: Carl Recine/Getty Images)
"It's such an amazing kind of feeling for Adam, scoring in front of the Kop. He's a Liverpool fan, come up through the Academy, it was outstanding for him.
"I was a little bit disappointed with their player, if I'm honest, I thought was a bit disrespectful.
"I don't think he does that against Chelsea, I don't think he does that against Arsenal, I don't think he does that in a Champions League game."
Hourihane was booked for dissent after the referee waved away penalty claims for a Szoboszlai challenge on Reyes Cleary, but on reflection he took a kinder view. Szoboszlai touched the winger on the back, but wom the ball with his feet.
"I thought at the time it was a stonewall penalty, and looking back at it now seeing it after the game, the player probably does get a little bit of a touch on the ball, but at the same time, you could see that he's got into that panic mode.
"Reyes has got across him, (Szoboszlai was) pulling his shirt a little bit, and it was easily a decision that could have went our way
"I thought it was a big moment in the game, 2-1, and you never know, obviously, what can happen after that, so it was a big decision that just didn't quite go for us."
Barnsley were without boyhood Liverpool fan Josh Earl, who fractured a metatarsal before the game.
Liverpool host Brighton and Hove Albion in round four.