Lucas Leiva has opened up about the emotional farewell he experienced when leaving Liverpool after a decade at the club.
The Brazilian midfielder, who made 346 appearances for the Reds, moved to Lazio in the summer of 2017.
Having joined Liverpool from Grêmio in 2007, Lucas quickly established himself as a key player under Rafael Benitez.
He continued to play an important role during the tenures of Sir Kenny Dalglish and Brendan Rodgers.
However, with Jürgen Klopp’s arrival in 2015, Lucas found himself in a more versatile role, adapting to various positions.
Eventually, he lost his starting spot, with Jordan Henderson and Gini Wijnaldum becoming the preferred midfield pairing.
As it became increasingly clear that his time at Liverpool was coming to an end, Lucas Leiva recognised it was time to seek a new opportunity.
Reflecting on the final conversations with Klopp, he revealed that he couldn’t hold back his emotions during their discussions, admitting that he cried when the moment came to finalise his move to Lazio.
He said: “I cried at my final meeting with Jurgen Klopp in the summer of 2017.
“I spoke many times with Jurgen – our relationship is still fantastic – but there were two times I spoke to him about maybe leaving.
“Jurgen came in and I played a lot of games under him, but I always felt he was going to build a new team with new players and a new style of play.
“I was clever enough to understand that my style of play wouldn’t necessarily fit the way he wanted.
“He was always very honest, I was always very honest with him.
“He arrived in October 2015 and in the January I had a big offer from China.
“I remember a couple of days before the game against Man United, I said, ‘Listen, I’ve had this offer.
“Let’s be fair, it’s a lot of money and I’m not sure if I’m going to play here. What do you think?’
“He said, ‘Lucas, I understand, but I cannot let you go because I only arrived four months ago and I need you.
“You will play a big part.’
“He always used to say, ‘I cannot promise you’re going to play as much as you want, but I can promise you that you’re going to play a big part.'”
Lucas added: “That’s why I always liked Jurgen – because he was always very honest.
“In another moment I had a very good opportunity but Jurgen said, ‘I still need you.’ I was coming to my last year of my Liverpool contract and he said, ‘Next year, if something good comes for you, I will help you out.’
“That was the case.
“That pre-season when Lazio came in for me, I felt it was the right moment.
“They were flying to Hong Kong in the afternoon and in the morning came that Lazio offer.
“He said, ‘Stay back, get everything done, don’t worry.’
“It was emotional. I cried and he did a little bit as well because of the respect we had for each other.”
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