Quantcast
View from the Kop

His Long Awaited Return Gives Rodgers a Pre-Season Boost

|
Image for His Long Awaited Return Gives Rodgers a Pre-Season Boost

THERE may not be any new signings going through the drills at Melwood just yet, but the fact that Lucas Leiva has returned for pre-season training is a huge boost for Liverpool.

The loss of Lucas at the end of November was a huge blow to the 2011-12 season and Reds fans around the globe will be delighted that the Brazilian has finally recovered. The man who was named Liverpool’s Player of the Season in 2010-11 will be determined to make up for lost time as the club tries to improve on our disappointing eighth place finish last year.

Despite Liverpool’s abundance of central midfielders, we struggled to replace Lucas after his injury last year because none of our midfielders defend as well as he does.

Steven Gerrard is a great tackler but we all know he is at his strongest when charging forwards, not harrying back. Meanwhile, the likes of Jordan Henderson, Jonjo Shelvey and Jay Spearing are simply not on Lucas’ level.

Brendan Rodgers would do well to sign a competent defensive midfielder who can act as cover for Lucas but when he is fit and available, the 25-year-old should be one of the first names on Rodgers’ team sheet.

The biggest concern when a player comes back from an injury as serious as damaging an anterior cruciate ligament is whether or not that player will be as good a footballer when he returns. However in an interview with the Liverpool FC website, Lucas vowed to come back stronger:

“I am confident I will be back at the same level because I know how hard I am working,” the Brazilian said and he added that there is no need for him to be scared.

It is clear that Lucas is determined to be back to his best as soon as possible and with friendlies against AS Roma and Tottenham Hotspur included in Liverpool’s pre-season tour of North America, our number 21 won’t have to wait long to test himself against top quality opposition.

If Liverpool want to break back into the top four, they will need Lucas to be fit and fighting. We lost the midfield battle too often last season and it is a telling statistic that despite featuring in only twelve Premier League games, Lucas was still one of Liverpool’s top tacklers for 2011-12. His pass completion percentage for the 2010-11 season was 83%, which supports Michael Moran’s argument that Lucas will fit right into Rodgers’ ‘tiki-taka’ methods.
[ad_pod id=”unruly-video” align=”center”]
The Brazilian’s defensive work may be his greatest strength but Lucas can also be a valuable asset when Liverpool are attacking. Who knows, Lucas might even improve his currently tally of six goals in 183 appearances.

Whatever happens, it will be good to see the Brazilian back in the side. Though he was once heavily criticised by Reds fans, five years into his career at Anfield, Lucas is one of the club’s most important players. If he can reach the height of his performances in 2010-11, Liverpool’s midfield will look far stronger with Lucas at the heart of it alongside Steven Gerrard.

We can only hope that the players who bore the brunt of fans’ frustrations last year, such as Jordan Henderson, can follow the example set by Lucas and become key players for the club despite their early setbacks.
[ad_pod id=’DFP-MPU’ align=’right’]
Live4Liverpool is recruiting columnists. For further info contact the site editor at live4liverpool@snack-media.com

Follow us on Twitter here: @live4Liverpool and ‘Like’ us on Facebook

Share this article

11 comments

  • Welcome back Mr Lucas,,,, i believe in what He can do…. Cant wait to watch him play again after a long time out because of injury….. YNWA!!!!!!

  • biggz says:

    Good to see u again LL,we all miss u n wil b hapi to see u on pitch again

  • shadow says:

    Steven Gerrard is a great tackler but we all know he is at his strongest when charging forwards,

    ==> I totally disagree with that, Gerrard is getting old and he has never been a fast and pacy player, his quality is in his vision of the game and the quality of his passes
    He should play not far from lucas to accelerate the game

  • RedRoy says:

    What is it about Lucas? i’ve only seen two or three good performances from him in four years! Won’t win anything with him, unless that injury has made him 10 times better, can’t see it though! Need three new midfielders.

  • tobbi3 says:

    @Roy,i can’t believe you are actually as dumb as your name sounds.Before he was injured ,the total no of tackles he won were more than that of the best Epl defender in the 2011/2012 season…screw you INGRATE

  • tobbi3 says:

    @roy, You are actually dumber than your name sounds,let me remind you that the total no of tackles he won before he was injured were more than that won by EPL’s best defender 2011/2012 season all together

  • peter says:

    This a welcome development one of our best is back, I just hope he form will be as good as when he got the ingiury,locus I thank God for you and for your retures

  • Me says:

    our training kit jersey looks pretty good, i think!

  • aham says:

    @Roy. I dnt think u are a liverpool fan, u neva even watched a couple of games. Lucas is by far, a greater defensive midfielder than mos premier league midfielders. Welcome back Lucas, i missed you more.

  • Dele says:

    Welcome back LL

Comments are closed.