Danny Ings cut short his summer break because he was so determined to be part of a pre-season tour with Liverpool that he is incredibly excited for.
Before arriving on Merseyside after an impressive Barclays Premier League campaign with Burnley, the striker was away with England U21s at the European Championship.
So keen was Ings to begin life at Melwood, though, he refused to take his full holiday entitlement, instead spending his first day at the training base on Wednesday.
“I was given the option to obviously have a little bit of extra time because I only had two weeks because of the U21 tournament and stuff,” he told LFCTour.com.
“But I thought it was really important that I got in, met all the lads, met all the staff and settled in, because if you meet them after the tour, you haven’t got that pre-season when you are gelling with the team and with the staff.
“For me, it was important that I got in early, got to meet everyone, got all of the fitness stuff sorted and get my head down and work hard from now. I was just so excited to get in and get started.
“I don’t think I have ever been as excited in my career, to be fair. It has been a tough journey to get to this stage, coming from the Conference South to in four years be sat in front of you guys.
“It is definitely an opportunity to see what it is like to be at such a massive club and see the fanbase in different countries and to enjoy the moment.”
Nothing will quite be able to prepare the affable No.28 for the scenes that will greet Liverpool in Thailand, Australia and Malaysia this month.
But Ings has attempted to gain a greater understanding of what is to come by researching clips from the club’s previous visits to the region.
He said: “I’ve heard how extreme it can be out there. Around your hotels, when you get off the planes and at the stadiums, how full they are, and the atmosphere.
“You only have to search on YouTube to see what it is like. To be a part of that will be massive for me and it’s definitely an experience I can’t wait for.
“I think the YouTube video that I watched was actually in Australia. When they were singing ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’, it just gives you goosebumps.
“To be a part of that is going to be massive for me. It is going to be huge for my development as a player to handle the fanbase around the world, to play in front of them and to perform at the top level.
“The fact that you’ve got thousands and thousands of fans watching you is what we thrive off as players. It’s why we do it. I’m sure the lads will definitely enjoy it and I am definitely looking forward to it.”
Tour tickets available now by clicking here, or if you can’t get to the games then watch live on LFCTV and LFCTV GO.
