Jonjo excited for Lucas return
Jonjo Shelvey praised Lucas Leiva's footballing tenacity and backed the Brazilian to have an immediate impact when he returns from a four-month absence in December.
It was Shelvey who took to the field to replace Lucas he pulled up with a hamstring injury after just minutes of play against Manchester City in August.
Yesterday, Lucas played his first minutes since sustaining the injury as Liverpool U21s edged past Middlesbrough at the Academy and Shelvey is now relishing the prospect of his teammates senior return.
"I think he has been a big miss," Shelvey told Liverpoolfc.com. "In the holding role, his tenacity and willingness to get the ball back and then the way he is able to keep it simple has been missed.
"I think Joe Allen has done very well in his absence but Lucas is a brilliant player. Over the last few years he has been tremendous. Ever since he came to this club he has been superb.
"You see what he does in training every day. He's so determined to get back playing and when he returns he is going to be a great asset to the squad."
On Friday, Brendan Rodgers revealed he expects the midfielder to return to first-team action in early December, meaning Lucas will play no part in the Reds' trip to Swansea on Sunday.
Shelvey, on the other hand, will be hoping to feature and build on his performance against Young Boys on Thursday night, when he took his tally in the Europa League to four goals for the campaign.
"Swansea pass and move so it will be a good footballing game on a big pitch," he said. "We've got to get in their faces and let them know that we are the team not to be underestimated this time."
An impressive 3-0 win over Wigan in their last Barclays Premier League game pushed the Reds into 11th position in the table, two points behind Tottenham, four behind Arsenal and five behind Everton.
And while Shelvey insists he and his teammates have been paying little attention to the early-season form of their rivals, he believes a top-four finish is achievable come May.
"The other teams' results always come in when we get off the pitch and you always go and have a look," he said. "But I don't think we can pay too much attention to what other teams are doing at this stage because there is still a long way to go in the season.
"But at the end of the season, I think we will be in and around the top four."