Liverpool’s summer signings are only likely to realise the size of the club they have joined during the upcoming pre-season tour, Lucas Leiva insists.
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A number of the Reds’ latest acquisitions have taken part in their first training session at Melwood since the players returned to action on Monday.
They have met their new teammates, spoken to manager Brendan Rodgers, and begun to familiarise themselves with life at a new club in their first days on Merseyside.
But Lucas says the likes of Danny Ings, James Milner, Joe Gomez and Nathaniel Clyne are yet to get a glimpse of the size of the club’s fanbase, and he expects the upcoming trips to Thailand, Australia, Malaysia and Finland to be an eye-opener for those players.
“We still have a few days to go but over there they will have an idea about what Liverpool is about,” he told Liverpoolfc.com.
“They know a lot but when you travel so far away from Liverpool and get that reception they will realise how big this club is and as I said hopefully they will settle very quickly.
“It just makes you realise how big the club is in terms of the amount of fans and anywhere in the world you go you get a good reception.
“This tour is always good because we can speak with people that don’t have a chance to come to Liverpool to watch games and it will be a great opportunity for them.”
Lucas also underlined the importance of using the pre-season campaign to help recent arrivals adapt quickly to their new surroundings.
The midfielder has promised to do his utmost to make the transition easy – especially for his fellow Brazilian Roberto Firmino.
“Of course we lost a lot of important players but the players that are coming, they will try to not replace them but try to adapt to our squad and perform the way they did at their previous club,” he added.
“That’s why they are here and we will make everything possible for them to adapt very well.
“In my case with Firmino, I have been doing this for many years now with the new players, Brazilians especially, coming into the country and the club and trying just to help them to settle quickly.
“Hopefully, if they can perform as soon as possible, it will be better for us.”
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