Lucas Leiva to Stay at Anfield—for Now

Despite having been linked with a move to Inter Milan before the window opened, a third of the way through January, Lucas Leiva is still a Liverpool player and the Inter rumours have largely faded. It doesn’t mean things might not change, but for now, Lucas’ immediate future is at Anfield.

‘Of course there are always rumours but today the best place for me to be is Liverpool,” said the Liverpool midfielder when asked about the rumours. “I cannot say about tomorrow. The manager has been very good to me and we have a very open relationship so it is nothing I am worried about.”

Lucas does admit, though, that a squad role isn’t how he sees playing out the rest of career, and that seems to line up well with the widespread belief that this will be his final season at the club before Liverpool’s longest serving current player moves on in search of playing time in the summer.

And though it’s not impossible that an offer comes along before the end of the month that’s tempting to both Lucas and Liverpool, and while a sale before then isn’t impossible, it’s most likely that Lucas will still be at Anfield when the transfer window slams shut in a couple of weeks.

The player wants to play more, and that’s only natural. He will likely move on eventually because of it. Inter’s rumoured interest in taking him on loan never made a great deal of sense as a potential solution that would satisfy that desire for Lucas, and it made even less sense for Liverpool.

“You want to play,” he added. “We get paid to play. But I just try to be professional and help as much as I can and when I have the chance do my best. That is the only thing I think everyone asks. It is not something I want for my future to not play much, especially at this time of my career.

“But at this moment I have to deal with the situation and keep working. The best place for me to be now is Liverpool. I cannot say in one week's time, one month's time, or four months' time. I have to judge when something comes up if it is better.”