The Brazilian That Could

 

My favorite player in the Premier League is not one of the top goal scorers like Sergio Aguero nor a playmaking midfield star like Bastian Schweinsteiger. No, my favorite is Liverpool’s Brazilian defensive midfielder Lucas Leiva.

Lucas has experienced highs and lows during his 8 years at Anfield. He’s been relentlessly criticized by pundits and some of the Liverpool faithful. But these challenges have always brought out the best in him. Through sheer force of will and determination, Lucas has overcome many challenges that should’ve ended a career in the Premier League.

He arrived at Anfield in the summer of 2007 from the Brazilian club Gremio after a successful start to his professional career. He was youngest player ever to be awarded the Bola de Ouro (Golden Ball).

Lucas struggled to break into the starting squad because he was competing against world-class midfield talent with the likes of Xabi Alonso, Steven Gerrard and Javier Mascherano. Despite the stiff competition for a midfield spot, Lucas made over 30  appearances his debut year and even notched up a FA Cup goal and five assists. His goal made him the first Brazilian to score for Liverpool.

The 2008-09 season was the first of several major challenges for Lucas. After winning the bronze medal in the Beijing Olympics with the Brazilian national team, many had high hopes for his return to Liverpool. But he struggled to find his form upon returning to England. After several poor performances, Lucas faced criticism from pundits and some Liverpool supporters booed him off the pitch after a draw against Fulham in November 2008. Rafael Benitez, Liverpool’s manager at the time, publicly defended Lucas while he was under fire. “People just don’t know how good Lucas is,” he said. I suspect that since then Benitez has enjoyed quite a few I told you so’s.

 

Lucas makes one his famous tackles.

 

Lucas vowed to improve and after being booed off the pitch his reaction was commendable. Instead of saying—to hell with Liverpool and the supporters, I’m working my ass off and you boo me! Lucas’s main thought was, what can I learn from this? He even admitted in an interview that he understood why some fans had booed him and that he held no hard feelings about it.

Lucas pressed on. By December he was being praised again by pundits and fans after several strong performances.

After Xabi Alonso left Liverpool for Real Madrid, Lucas stepped up to a regular starting spot in midfield where he excelled. His work ethic won over the fans who once booed him and they even voted him Young Player of the Year for the 2009-10 season. His excellent form continued and he established a reputation for consistency, which he maintains today.

After many excellent performances during the 2010-11 season, Lucas was awarded Player of the Year by Liverpool fans. I don’t know of another case of a player who was once booed off the pitch and then won Player of the Year just two years later.

After suffering a serious knee injury in November 2011, Lucas missed rest of the season. By the time he returned to the squad Brendan Rodgers had taken over management at Anfield. Lucas fought his way back initially as a substitute and by March 2013 he was starting matches again.

He suffered two more injury setbacks under Brendan Rodgers. After recovering from the second injury Rodgers rotated him in and out of the squad at the start of the 2014-15 season. But once again with characteristic determination, Lucas fought his way back to a regular starting spot after an excellent display in the Champions League in November 2014.

I was disappointed that Rodgers named James Milner captain after Henderson was out injured. Milner is an excellent player, but I really think Lucas deserved it. He has proven his loyalty to Liverpool time and again and is the longest serving player on the roster.

As late as August 2015, rumors were surfacing about a move for Lucas to Besiktas and Inter Milan. It was widely reported that he had fallen out of favor with Rodgers. This was a new challenge for Lucas. Managers always had some sort of vision for him. Then as chance would have it, Jordan Henderson was injured after only two matches and Rodgers scrambled for a midfielder to replace him; Lucas was waiting in the wings.

He put on an impressive, some have said career-saving, effort against Arsenal in late August and has started every match since. He’s even outlasted Rodgers, who was fired in October. It seems a strange twist of fate that Liverpool got rid of the man who tried to get rid of Lucas.

On the pitch, Lucas has established himself in a position that is unusual for Brazilian midfielders in the Premier League. He once said that Brazilian footballers in England face an inevitable comparison to the tricky, flashy players  like Robinho or Ronaldinho. (Lucas’s compatriot and teammate Philippe Countinho fits much better in such a comparison) But Lucas is cut from a different cloth.

He is aggressive, yet disciplined and always seems to know where to apply pressure in midfield to win the ball. He eschews flashy displays in favor of tactical vision and hard defensive work. His style is not always the prettiest, but it is among the most effective. He was recently noted to be the most successful tackler in the Premier League.

Lucas’s ability to read the game and excellent passing skills make him the heart of Liverpool’s midfield. He is often the critical spark of counterattacks by winning tackles and making long, accurate passed upfield.

I was overjoyed to see Lucas wear the captain’s armband in Liverpool’s last match at Anfield. It’s an honor he fully deserves. He is thriving once again with Jurgen Klopp at the helm at Anfield.

At only 28 years old, Lucas has years to play ahead of him. His current contract will keep him at Anfield until 2017 and I hope he extends it and retires there. To me, he has become as much a fixture at Anfield as Steven Gerrard. It would break my heart if he ever left.

Career threatening injuries, antagonistic managers and booing fans, Lucas has outlasted it all. He is the Brazilian that could.