Lucas's joy at fitness progress

The 25-year-old missed over half of last term after undergoing surgery on his anterior cruciate ligament following an injury sustained in the Carling Cup win at Chelsea in November.

Lucas is now targeting a return to first-team action as soon as possible following a spell of rehab in his native Brazil.

"I don't have too many experiences with injuries because fortunately I had none in my time at Liverpool previously, so it has been a learning process for me as well and I am very happy with the progress," said the Reds' No.21.

"I think I am progressing very well in terms of the knee, strength and fitness-wise.

"I am working every week and trying to improve every week and the main target is to be fit for the new season."

The Brazilian international is convinced that he will come back stronger after his time on the sidelines and is determined to perform at the same levels that saw him named Liverpool's Player of the Season in 2010-11.

Lucas added: "I am confident I will be back at the same level because I know how hard I am working.

"The first four weeks I saw my knee it was very bad looking and it comes through your head that you might not be at the same level you were before.

"But at the same time you see big players who had the same injury come back and be even better.

"There is no need for me to be scared. Rather than stay protecting myself, I need to work on my head as well to come back and play the same way I was playing before.

"One of the things which made me strong in the team was how aggressive I was in tackles and things like that, so I cannot lose that."

Lucas admits he found it hard to come to terms with picking up the first long-term injury of his career, but he is now in a much more positive frame of mind as he looks forward to an exciting new era at Anfield under Brendan Rodgers.

"It has been very hard for me because I have never been out for a month so you can imagine five months when I can't play and only watch the game," he said.

"I just had to cope with the injury and the time. As soon as I got the injury I knew I would be out for many months and I started to think about other things.

"The most difficult period for me was when I was on crutches for two months, especially the first four weeks after the surgery when the knee was swollen.

"To be honest, for a few moments I thought I couldn't come back or even walk, because the way I looked at my knee I felt scared.

"But as soon as I started the rehab, it is unbelievable how your body reacts.

"My main target now is to be 100 per cent recovered and be okay to play a part in next season."