Lucas: “The Future Will Take Care of Itself”

Liverpool fans know whatever happens over the next few weeks, there will be a few big moves in the summer transfer window. It’s the same every year at every big club, and with a new manager going into his first summer with a chance to leave his mark on the squad, there will no doubt be changes at Anfield.

The players know this just as well as the fans. It’s a reality that’s part and parcel of being a professional football player, and for many it’s the tradeoff; the downside to a chance at fame, fortune, and to make a career of kicking a ball about a pitch. And according to Lucas Leiva, all you can do is embrace the moment and play your best.

"I would be lying if I said we were all relaxed in terms of this, because we don’t know what’s going to happen and who is going to be in his plans for the future," the veteran said. "I think in my experience you need to live in the moment, try to play well, and if you want to be here you do your best. The future will take care of itself."

If any player on the Liverpool squad has experience with being unsure of his place heading into the offseason, it’s Lucas. Nearing the end of his tenth season at the club, he is on his fourth manager since Rafa Benitez was dismissed, and since the Spaniard’s departure hardly a summer has gone by without speculation as to his future.

So far, the now 29-year-old has survived every time. More than that, he’s made himself an important player for every manager. Not always a nailed-on starter, but important. Whether he’s proven that importance to Jürgen Klopp yet only the manager knows, but there are some signs that Lucas may survive yet another summer.

He was a regular starter in the autumn, and though following an injury Jordan Henderson and Emre Can became the preferred midfield pairing, he remains the club’s only real defensive specialist and the only player capable of anchoring a single-pivot midfield. He has also shown some useful versatility, filling in capably at centre half.

"It’s a club I have been at for so many years, playing under so many managers," Lucas added. "There’s no reason to be afraid of anything. It’s a question of time and doing what we can, and if it works it will be brilliant. If not then we will have to find a solution."