Adam Lewis on Pep influence, Trent inspiration and hopes for the future

The moment for Scouser Lewis arrived on the night of February, when he started in the FA Cup fourth-round win over Shrewsbury Town at Anfield.

After featuring for the Reds on their pre-season tour of the USA last summer, the Academy graduate then picked up a serious knee injury while playing for the U23s in September.

The 20-year-old subsequently missed the Carabao Cup quarter-final tie at Aston Villa and the FA Cup third-round win over Everton.

But Lewis returned to enjoy a night that will live with him forever as a youthful Reds side beat Shrewsbury.

Liverpoolfc.com caught up with Lewis recently to reflect on his last year and hopes for the future...

On getting the call to go on the USA tour with the first team…

To be honest, I was shocked. As a Liverpool fan and then playing against these players that I never dreamed of playing, it was amazing. I’ve got my shirts framed in my bedroom. I swapped shirts with Axel Witsel when we played against Borussia Dortmund and he came up to me and asked me how young I was. He told me I was a good player, keep going and one day I will be like him, which was like, 'Wow!' Playing against the likes of Marco Reus, Mario Gotze – World Cup winners – was just fantastic. I was blessed to get that chance because I think any other lad at my age who plays football would just love that moment. Going on a pre-season tour to America is something I’ve always dreamed of, even if I didn’t play a minute, I was still around players who have won the Champions League. It was incredible. My dream has come true because of that and I want more of it. I’m hungry for more.

On the opportunity to show Jürgen Klopp and his backroom staff what he can do…

Massive. I have a close relationship with Pep [Lijnders] because he brought me into his U16 team when he first came to the club. I love him as a coach and as a person because I trust him. Obviously seeing what our manager has done, the same with Peter [Krawietz] as well with the history they have got behind them, is incredible. Just look at what we’ve done this season and since he’s been at Liverpool. He has turned this club around and being trained by those people makes you want to be a better player. I know that for a fact because Pep played me as a midfielder in his U16s team. I can play in midfield but obviously I prefer left-back now. But I like that because Pep knows that I can play in two different positions. It’s always good to have that versatility because you are not relying on just left-back. Pep has believed in me. When I first met him I was struggling to get in the team after recovering from a broken leg but I was training hard. He came up to me and said some great words of encouragement and it meant a lot to me. I played every game for him then that season.

On the inspiration Trent Alexander-Arnold's progress has provided...

Trent was in the U16 team under Pep that I played in. I’ve known Trent for quite a long while now and I’ve always said he was going to be a player one day. From when we were young and just watching him I told him that. At this moment in time he is probably the best right-back in the world without a shadow of a doubt.

On the frustration of picking up a knee injury which kept him out of action for four months…

It was very frustrating, but it was a challenge at the end of the day and I overcame it. It’s not always going to be fun in football, it’s not always like that. I’ve had a few injuries but this was a real tough one because coming on the back of going to America and training with the first team, I thought this was my chance to show that I am ready. I believed in myself but then I got my injury and I was heartbroken because I felt like I was ready. I then injured my knee again in my rehab which was the day before I was due to start training again. My head was all over the place and I was thinking, ‘Why me?’ Critch [Neil Critchley] was brilliant with me though and told me to keep going.

On making his first-team debut against Shrewsbury after returning to fitness...

I couldn’t explain how good that night was. Yasser Larouci got injured at Wolves and I thought I might be in with a chance here. I never dreamed of this moment because at the start of my injury I didn’t think I’d make it. The best moment about it was seeing my family there at Anfield and walking out to You’ll Never Walk Alone – that was just the best moment of my life so far. When I got home I said to my mum and my girlfriend that my shirt was going to be framed. They got it for me as a present and it’s up on my wall now. Even now I get goosebumps thinking about it because we were the underdogs and nobody ever expected us to win. When we were warming up and went back into the changing rooms we were so fired up and thinking, ‘We do expect to win this, we are going out to win!’ We did and we never gave up. As a young lad, a Scouser, my dream was to play in front of 50,000 fans at Anfield. I just thought ‘wow’ and my eyes lit up and I said I’ve got to play at my best now. With me just coming back from my injury there was a lot of pressure on me but to get through that 90 minutes because I hadn’t played that much. To get through that 90 minutes I didn’t think I’d do it and I thought in myself that’s probably the best game I’ve ever had. I probably never had the perfect game but that night will stay with me forever.

On the post-match celebrations in front of the Kop…

I’m a young lad from Liverpool who has just played in front of the best fans in the world. Any lad my age would die for that moment. I’m blessed to say that I have done that. I was so pleased for Critch and I was glad to share that with him. It was just unbelievable.

On seeing Neco Williams thrive and getting first-team opportunities…

We have a manager who gives kids a chance. Neco has always been an athletic player and has played against Everton, Chelsea, Shrewsbury. He started off as a winger, I started off as a winger as well. Things happen like that. I think our manager and his staff notice where is best for you and Neco has a big opportunity now with just Trent in his way. It’s going to be tough because Trent is young but being a second-choice right-back at Liverpool, I’d take that any day.

On his aims for the year ahead…

I haven’t played much during the past 12 months so the main thing is to stay fit, stay healthy, stay safe and keep everyone else safe. I would like to get out on loan, which is my aim for next season to get that experience. Sometimes people will ask me why aren’t I at Melwood or training with the first team, but you’ve got to realise you are playing for the best team in the world. This is probably one of the hardest teams to get into right now, so getting out on loan and being around a senior environment will help me as a player because I’ll be training with men.