Brendan Rodgers saluted Steven Gerrard as an irreplaceable talent after the Liverpool captain marked his penultimate game at Anfield with a late winner.
Gerrard, who will join the LA Galaxy in the summer, missed a penalty against QPR but headed in Philippe Coutinho's 87th-minute corner to earn Liverpool all three points and send Chris Ramsey's side a step closer to relegation.
The 34-year-old will only make one more appearance for Liverpool at Anfield, against Crystal Palace on May 15, and Rodgers led the tributes to him.
"This is a guy that you cannot replace," he said in a news conference. "It will probably only be when he is gone that people will recognise what a sheer talent he is.
"There is a very, very small group of players where in the big games they score the big goals and make the big contributions and he has done that throughout his career. It is a world-class talent."
Gerrard's 184th Liverpool goal took him into fifth place among their all-time scorers and Rodgers added: "It was brilliant to get it at the Kop End as well. A real special moment for him. It all goes very very quickly. You can see he is still contributing at this level."
The Liverpool manager revealed that fans had been telling him to substitute Gerrard, saying: "There were people behind me shouting to get him off."
But Rodgers was adamant that, after Robert Green saved Gerrard's spot kick, the former England captain could exert a decisive impact.
He explained: "A lot of players when they miss a big penalty their game goes and their confidence goes. He is the total opposite. He is one of a unique group of players that when they need to respond, they do.
"He missed a penalty and you think it may go against us but there was no one more determined to make up for it."
A plane flew overhead in the opening exchanges of the game with a banner that read: "Rodgers Out Rafa In" but the Liverpool manager made light of the suggestion he should be replaced by one of his predecessors, current Napoli coach Rafa Benitez.
He joked: "I thought it was Rafa's agent. Football has short memories. We were sat here last year nearly winning the league and never got planes flying over.
"You can't do anything about it. I am very fortunate and privileged to work here at Liverpool.
"As I've said before, there will be many names linked with this job because of the size and the scale of the job that is to be undertaken here.
"But am hugely honoured every single day of my life and I will continue to be, however long it lasts."