'Fitness is the main thing at the moment'
Joe Allen insists that fitness is the primary concern for the Liverpool squad at the moment as they continue their pre-season preparations with a journey to Preston North End today.
The Reds suffered a late 2-1 defeat in their opening outing of 2014-15 on Wednesday, with a stoppage-time goal handing Brondby victory in Denmark.
Despite the result, each and every one of the 23-man travelling party clocked up minutes on the pitch, positive progress with regards to physical condition.
"That's the main thing," Allen explained to Liverpoolfc.com ahead of the friendly with Preston, which will be broadcast live on LFCTV GO.
"Your general fitness is probably the most important thing then the tactics and performance come second - although it seems strange saying that!
"But at the same time, we're looking to hit the ground running in terms of performances. If we can pick up some good results, it would obviously be an added bonus as well.
"It's always tough when you come back. But we're getting over the first 10 days now, which is obviously the toughest. We're coming through it."
Brendan Rodgers' side were impressive 4-0 victors when they last crossed swords with the home side at Deepdale 12 months ago.
"It was a good game last year," added the Welsh midfielder. "We're looking to really build match fitness up.
"We had the chance at Brondby to get 45 minutes under our belt. I'm sure we can progress from Saturday onwards from that point of view, because the season will be around before you know it."