Marko Grujic has spoken about the early weeks of his Liverpool career - insisting that he believes he has the quality to succeed at the club after an impressive pre-season thus far.
The midfielder moved to Liverpool from Red Star Belgrade for a fee of £5.1 million in January 2016 but was loaned back to Red Star Belgrade for the remainder of the season which saw him win the Serbian Championship.
His loan back to Belgrade meant that many Liverpool fans were still yet to see the 20-year-old kick a ball and this added to their excitement of watching him play for the first time in the domestic pre-season.
Grujic, who scored six goals and assisted seven for Red Star last season, played a vital role in his boyhood club's success last season by featuring in 30 of their league games.
Grujic keen to continue superb pre-season
And he's started his career on Merseyside with similar success, scoring two goals in three appearances in Liverpool’s domestic pre-season tour.
Both goals were very similar in style, but it hasn't just been his exploits in front of goal that have impressed Liverpool fans in their first glimpse of the midfielder.
For his age, his physical presence, domineering nature and creative ability in midfield have also left an impression on the crowd - having stood out convincingly in his performances thus far.
When speaking of his two goals Grujic admitted to the Liverpool Echo that he knows “they are only friendly games” but the Serbian went on to explain his passionate celebrations saying: “Whenever I score a goal my adrenaline always goes very high. I just can’t control myself!”
When talking about the topic of English football, in comparison to the Serbian top-flight, Grujic revealed that games “are faster” and that “the tempo is quicker than I was used to.”
However, the talented youngster boasted: “But I feel like I have the qualities to help me do well.”
Grujic showed how grateful he was to be in such a quality Liverpool side, calling it “a pleasure” to “play alongside quality players like [Philippe] Coutinho, [Roberto] Firmino, [Sadio] Mane and [Dejan] Lovren.”
Midfielder on settling in at Liverpool and the club's America pre-season tour
Reds boss Jürgen Klopp was the man that drew Grujic to Merseyside, with a host of other European clubs.
When discussing the German, Grujic said:”Jurgen is a great coach and I’m learning all the time [under him].”
Klopp’s right-hand man Zeljko Buvac was a huge factor for Grujic in getting his bearings at the club, the midfielder explaing: “He (Buvac) speaks the same language as me so that makes it easy to talk with him,” before going as far to say: “I feel like I’ve been at this club for two or three years already.”
Liverpool have travelled to America for a 10-day pre-season tour and it gives Grujic his first experience of visiting the States.
This tour is a great opportunity for the Reds' No.16. Not only will the competition the club face on the pitch increase in facing the likes of Chelsea and A.C. Milan, but the competition for places on the pitch will also increase as Liverpool’s internationals return from their breaks after their involvements at Euro 2016.
Grujic admitted that he and his teammates “have some difficult games coming up against stronger teams” which he said is “what we need.”
Speaking of the players returning to the squad from international duty, he acknowledged: “[James] Milner, [Emre] Can and [Jordan] Henderson - they are perfect. There is lots of competition for those midfield places.”
Grujic will need to prove his quality further over in America if he is to earn himself a starting spot in Klopp's side for the upcoming Premier League season.
If the 6ft 3ins Serbia U21 international can continue his current pre-season form across the Atlantic, then he will surely be in with a big shout for a spot Liverpool’s midfield at the start of the coming season.
“Of course I want to play in the first XI in the Premier League, but there are a lot of very good players at this club in my position,” Grujic declared. He went on to vow to “prove” himself so that he can “get minutes on the pitch” and “keep contributing” to the team.
Grujic ended by saying: “Everything has been like a dream for me at Liverpool so far and now I will continue to give my best.”
The £5.1 million midfielder certainly appears to be a very talented young footballer and his desire to prove himself in the big league with a big club bodes well.
With the performances the club's supporters have already seen so far, he has the qualities to achieve to exactly that over the next few years at Anfield.