Jordan Williams has spoken of his determination to make a real impression during pre-season as he brings an end to a nine-month spell on the sidelines.

The 20-year-old picked up a cartilage issue while on loan with Swindon Town last season and was forced to undergo surgery before a long recovery phase.

The former Wrexham youngster, who joined the Reds in 2009, made his only first-team appearance to date during the League Cup victory over Middlesbrough in September 2014 – also converting a penalty in front of the Kop during an epic shootout win.

After working hard during the close season, the Wales U21 international has now returned to training and is eager to make up for lost time.

However, the versatile player says his goals are realistic and accepts that a lot more hard work lies ahead as he strives to get back to his best.

"It’s a massive challenge for me,” Williams told Liverpoolfc.com.

“I’ve been in over the close season working with the physios, working hard on my fitness. I’m looking forward to getting back with the team and starting training again.

“I’ve been through a tough time with the injury and you want to be back as quickly as possible but I think I’ve got to take my time to get back.

“I know I’m not going to be fully fit and match fit straight away, but I think I can get that back. I feel fit in myself now, but training compared to playing in a match is completely different. When I can get my match fitness back I think I will be in a good place.”

Speaking about his injury, Williams admitted it was tough to take after starting life on loan in a very good place.

He added: “The start of last season went really well and I played every week, playing in a few different positions.

“I was then unfortunate to pick up an injury which kept me out for nine months. I just went in for a challenge and I heard a click.

“My meniscus was rubbing against my cartilage and it was clicking while I was running. They had to remove that and I’ve had enough time now to get over it. Hopefully I’m over that now. I just want to push on now and get back to the form I was showing before my injury.”

For most players, a spell on the sidelines can be somewhat tedious, but Williams says he knew that patience and hard work would be key to a full recovery.

He was also quick to praise Academy physios Andy Renshaw and Richie Partridge, who helped him through this tough period.

He added: “It’s been tough but our physios Andy and Richie helped me through it and I can’t thank them enough for what they have done for me.

“You have your days when you come in and you don’t want to be at the training ground because you see all of the lads go out training, working on the bike and with the ball, and you can’t.

“The reward is when you do come through it all and obviously, [while] you do want to be playing, I think overcoming an injury does help you mentally.”

Williams' injury means he hasn’t yet had the opportunity to train under the watchful eye of Jürgen Klopp.

That remains a goal for the season ahead - once he gets his full fitness back.

He said: “I just need a bit of luck. I think I deserve that after what I have come through.

“I do my believe in my ability and after what I have come through hopefully I can show that now and everything goes well.

“A couple of seasons ago I was up at Melwood working with Brendan Rodgers and then I went on loan. I haven’t had the chance to train at Melwood for a while so hopefully I’ll get the chance to go up there at some point and show the manager what I can do.”

A key element of the Bangor-born youngster's game is his versatility, and he is hoping that could work in his favour as he looks to get more senior appearances under his belt.

He added: “When I was at Swindon Town I played in a few different positions and I even played as an attacking midfielder there.

“It is good [having versatility] because I can play in different positions if I’m needed and it puts me in a good stead I think.”

Asked if he has a preferred role, Williams added: “It’s a tough one really. I like playing holding midfield because you can get on the ball a lot but I do really enjoy playing at centre-back.

“At Swindon Town when I played at centre-back we could bring the ball out of defence, which I enjoy. I think it really helped my game. The coaches at Swindon really helped me to improve and I’d like to thank them for that.”