Lucas eyes Britannia repeat

Brendan Rodgers' side head to Stoke for the Boxing Day clash in buoyant mood after the superb 4-0 win over Fulham.

In last season's Carling Cup fourth round clash, two magical goals from Luis Suarez gave the Reds a 2-1 victory, and the Brazilian believes they can win again.

Lucas told Liverpoolfc.com: "They get a lot of points at home but last season we had a great win there in the Carling Cup, and if we go into the game with that same approach and attitude then we will have a good chance.

"Every season when you look at the fixtures you always see when the Stoke game is as you know you will always be in for a tough game.

"It's always a difficult place to go and they are a difficult team to play against. They are effective, they have the right balance, they all know what to do as a team and they play to their strengths.

"In the Premier League you get used to the physical battles and it's not only Stoke because a lot of teams have big physical players, so you have to adapt if you want to be successful.

"It's up to us to approach it well and play well, and hopefully get the three points."

Former Red Charlie Adam missed Stoke's draw with Tottenham on Saturday as he was on compassionate leave following the tragic death of his father.

It is not known at this moment in time whether the midfielder will be back for the visit of his old club, but he is a player Lucas has a lot of respect for.

He added: "Charlie was very close to everyone in the squad and he is a good guy. He chose to go and get regular first-team football and we wish him all the best at Stoke."

Another ex-Red in the Potters' ranks is popular striker Peter Crouch - a man Lucas pointed out as a potential threat.

He added: "Peter has played against us for many years, first at Tottenham and now Stoke. It is very hard to mark him because he is so tall and he has a lot of quality with his feet as well, so it's going to be tough as always but we are capable of going there and getting the three points.

"It will be funny in a way to play against Charlie and Peter but when the game kicks off it will be all about the Liverpool shirt, which is the main thing, and trying to win the game."

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Despite such a hectic schedule over the festive period, Lucas insists he enjoys the matches over Christmas and off the field he is more than happy with his family staying with him, having travelled over from Brazil to Liverpool.

He added: "When I first came to Liverpool it wasn't common for me to play over Christmas as in Brazil you play from February until December, so around this time in the past I was probably on holiday.

"It's a different culture and a different country and I really feel the fans enjoy the Boxing Day game and all of the matches over Christmas.

"As a player you have no choice and you have to be focused because this is an important period for the team, and that's when you can get a good run and hopefully we will be in a better position.

"It's great for me as all of my family are over from Brazil so they can come to the games and spend some time with me."

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Liverpool's No.21 has now made four starts since his return to fitness and he is now hoping for an injury-free run in 2013.

He said: "2012 has been a very hard year for me but I always try to look at it the other way and think maybe it was a learning process for me as well in many ways.

"I hope this bad year I have had will help me in the future. It has been a difficult year but I'm playing again now and that is a positive end to the year for me.

"I had some very bad moments. People think Lucas is very strong but I really had some very difficult moments.

"Sometimes you have no choice and you can choose to be down or try to get on with it and work hard to get back. If you stay always complaining it doesn't help you.

"There are days when you just want to disappear but I'm back now and I'm very happy, and hopefully I can have a good run now until the end of the season and hopefully be successful with Liverpool."