Lucas Leiva: The big cup final interview

The occasion will provide the Brazilian with a first opportunity to represent the Reds at the national stadium after injuries ruled him out of the club’s last four visits to the venue.

It’ll therefore be a poignant occasion for Lucas if he’s selected, and while explaining the personal significance, the midfielder is eager to stress why lifting the trophy will be all the matters come full-time.

You can watch our exclusive chat with Lucas in full by clicking play on the embedded free video above. Need a subscription for LFCTV GO? Sign up now. Alternatively, read on for a full transcript…

Lucas, you're finally going to Wembley. How does that feel?

It feels so special. Of course, I have been there before but in difficult circumstances. I'm really confident that it is going to be a really good final and I'm really looking forward to playing a part.

You're obviously one of the more experienced players in the Liverpool squad, so what role do you have to play in helping your teammates ahead of the final?

I think finals are always special and in the last few years unfortunately we haven’t have many here. I think we have a very young team, but a lot of young teams have already played in difficult games, finals and national team games. I think they have enough experience to deal with a game like it will be on Sunday. The most important thing for me is about confidence. I don't have so much experience in terms of playing finals unfortunately, but I think if you change the way you approach too much [then] I don't think it is good. We know it is not another game but in your mind you have to think like that because in reality it is a very important game like many others. Of course, it is a trophy but if you forget about that, it is just a big game itself - Man City at Wembley. [We need to] play like we want to play and do the right things, and accept mistakes will happen, as always in every single game. [A final] always gives that extra motivation and determination for us to believe that we can win the cup.

Will your own preparations be different for this game than normal?

It will be exactly the same. Of course, a few hours before the game you start to get a little bit more excited, it's normal. But I think we have enough experience to calm down and go on the pitch and do what we have done before, which is win games and do what took us to the final. I think if you want to do more then sometimes you can forget what you have done before. Hopefully what we have done before to take us to the final will be enough to carry on and win the trophy.

How do you think you will be feeling when you wake up on Sunday morning?

Happy, I think, because to get to a final is always hard, especially here in England where you have so many teams that are always challenging. And happy to have the opportunity to have a chance to win a trophy. As I said, I didn't play the last final we won, I played until the semi-finals. It is just a good feeling, it always gives you the belief that everything you have done, with ups and downs, pays off. Now you just think you have a really big chance to win a trophy for the club and be a part of the history of the club as well.

You said after the semi-final, second leg game against Stoke that you’d be praying you could stay fit to be involved this time – and that you’d be asking your friends and family to do the same. So, have they?

Yes, I think they have because they know how hard I work every day. It is a special occasion. Since I first arrived, I always was taught that trophies are important for a player and as well for a club the size of Liverpool. This season I've been playing lots of games and my fitness is 100 per cent, so there is no point for me to be worried. For sure, the last problems I had was following something bad I had before, but this year has been so good and hopefully it will stay like that until May.

With those previous personal disappointments in missing out at Wembley, would a win on Sunday make it that bit sweeter for you personally?

Yes it will be because always when you play a part it is important. Not more important, but you appreciate it a lot more. Of course, the final is the biggest game and you want to be involved and that's why everyone is really working hard to get a place in the team and hopefully it will be good for everyone that will be involved.

Liverpool’s last two trips to Wembley have unfortunately ended in defeat against Chelsea and Aston Villa. However, could those memories being used as motivation?

If you look at the negative side, then yes. But if you look back and see the Cardiff and Everton [wins at Wembley] then everything changed and why can't it be the same? Of course, the last two [trips] were not great but it is another season and another team. All has changed and there is no reason we should look back on the negative things. You should look back on Stevie scoring in the last minutes against West Ham and things like this! I think at the end of the day there will be more positives to look at then negatives, but of course winning is always the most important thing.

26 players have been used in the competition this season by Liverpool. If you are to win on Sunday, then the whole squad can feel they have played a part…

Of course. It was a competition we started with most of the kids and they really did well. Towards the quarter-finals and semi-finals and since Jürgen arrived he has always told us that he really rates this competition. We just have to keep going and keeping believing and show how strong our squad is. Everyone is really confident they can play a part.

Opponents don't come much tougher than Man City do they?

It makes it difficult - but it doesn't make it impossible. We’ve reached the final because we have good things and they have good things, as we know as well. It will be an interesting game and let's see who will be better on the day. It is one game and anything can happen. We just have to have the belief.

Will what happened at the Etihad earlier this season have any bearing on Sunday?

It gives you confidence to go there and make the right things. [It] probably makes it important to do a lot of things the same way we did when we were, because that's why we won. For sure, they will be looking at what they didn’t do so good [on that day] and they will change because they have the players to do that. It is another game, of course we need to look back and see the positive things we have done. For sure they will improve from that game and it will be an interesting final.

What will be the important factors for Liverpool to win?

I think there are a lot of things [that are] important in a final. But I think the most important thing, I would say, is the belief that we can go there and get the trophy. The rest of course - the game plan, concentration and things like this - always play a big part. We need to show we want more than them to win the trophy and that's a big key.

Do the fans have a role to play on Sunday?

They always play a big role for us, not only in finals but every single game. They are behind us and it will be another beautiful day. There will be a lot red shirts around Wembley singing songs and pushing us till the end. That's what they do and that's what we expect from them because that's how they have been forever.

Do you want to thank the fans with a trophy?

[Winning] pays off for us but also for the fans. They are supporting us every day through good and bad times and of course they want to see the trophy. I think it is a combination of all the work, not just players, managers and staff but also the fans and the whole club. If you win the trophy then everyone feels that you’ve played a part and that's why it is so special to win finals. Hopefully we will be able to do it. For sure that's the only thing the fans want as well.

So, how do you think you will you be feeling if you feature in your first Liverpool cup final?

I will be happy and proud. I've experienced a lot of big games during my time here and it is another one. Of course it is a trophy and a final, but I will approach it the same way because that is what it took us - and took me - to the final. Hopefully I will have the chance to be involved and play a big part.

How do you think lifting the trophy would feel?

It will probably be one of the best moments of my career since I arrived here. The 2012 [final] I have very good memories of. Even [though] I was out injured, I have very good memories. Hopefully the next one will be even better and even more special because I think I deserve [it] for all the work I have done. Always something came to me in a hard time but I always put that away and kept going. That's why I think I deserve a lot.