Liverpool cult hero admits he almost retired aged 25 - 'A very, very dark moment for me'

Liverpool cult hero has revealed he almost retired at the age of 25 after suffering a serious knee injury.

Lucas underwent surgery on the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee after colliding with Juan Mata during 2-0 win over in a League Cup quarter-final clash back in 2011.

The injury saw his ruled out for the remainder of the campaign and after returning to action the following year, he picked up a thigh problem in Liverpool's second game of the season against .

That saw him miss another three months of football and left the midfielder contemplating retirement, with Lucas admitting it was a "very dark moment". Reflecting on his career, the Brazilian told : "The knee injury wasn't a problem because if you speak to 95 per cent of players who have had this injury they'll tell you it's a long time out but eventually you get back.

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"The problem was when I did all the pre-season ahead of 2012-13 and in the warm-up for the second game of the season I ruptured my muscle. I had a big tear that kept me out for three months.

"Both those injuries meant I was out for pretty much a whole year. I'll be honest, at that moment it came to my mind that I was going to retire or not be able to play anymore. It was a very, very dark moment for me.

"The doubt was always there. Of course I had many more injuries after, but I think this one was the one that made me doubt if I was going to get back playing."

However, Lucas bounced back and remained with until 2017 when he joined Serie A side Lazio. The 37-year-old is still a beloved figure at Anfield and has admitted he broke down in tears when he left after a decade on Merseyside.

"That pre-season when Lazio came in for me, I felt it was the right moment," he explained. "They were flying to Hong Kong in the afternoon and in the morning came that Lazio offer. He said, 'Stay back, get everything done, don't worry.'

"It was emotional. I cried and he did a little bit as well because of the respect we had for each other."

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