Pre-seasonLFC tour diary: Elevator chats, old friends catch up and Japan arrival

A fun and frantic Friday

A glance over the schedule suggests this may be the busiest day of the tour yet from our point of view, and so it proves.

Kicking us off is a morning training session in which new arrival Hugo Ekitike participates for the first time since he joined up with the squad in Asia. Once again, the humidity is stifling, at the very least for those of us who don’t possess the body of a professional athlete, but those who do see the benefits.

“I think it will help definitely, when we get back to England then the lungs will open,” Milos Kerkez tells us, before sharing a laugh about the reaction to his headed tackle against Preston North End earlier this month.

One game-based drill during this session is particularly competitive, with Andy Robertson and first assistant coach Sipke Hulshoff vocally ribbing each other over the fine details of it.

Soon it’s back to base at the hotel to capture media content with Ekitike. The Frenchman poses for some very cool pictures to celebrate his switch from Eintracht Frankfurt and then delivers a first official interview. He self-deprecatingly insists his English is not great but forgive us Hugo, you’re wrong. It’s an interesting and engaging chat about his excitement for the future with the Reds.

As we reconvene in our media working room to plot out the release of the Ekitike content in the hours ahead, there’s a surprise from our local freelance photographer, Sean, in the form of pineapple buns, a classic treat in Hong Kong. Perfect with a cup of tea. We love Sean.

Elsewhere, there’s chatter about trying to source a Labubu doll here, amid the current craze for the collectible plush monsters. A note from my wife claims I would earn huge dad points if I return to Merseyside with one for my daughter…

Meanwhile, use of the elevators comes almost as a lucky dip for which colleagues and players you could end up riding with. We have been squeezed in with Mohamed Salah, for example, while a couple of crew keep bumping into Arne Slot, and another is an accessory to a chat with three of Liverpool’s Dutch contingent - Giovanni van Bronckhorst, Hulshoff and Virgil van Dijk sharing words and smiles in their native language.

Now, it’s all eyes on matchday…

Meeting Milan

We spot two old friends catching up in the hotel on the morning of the game. Xavi Valero, who recently returned to Liverpool as head of first-team goalkeeper coaching, is deep in conversation with Lucas Leiva, one of our legends on tour. The Spaniard and the Brazilian were previously colleagues at the club between 2007 and 2010.

Speaking of Valero, we nab a first interview with him since he came back, while also sitting down with Van Bronckhorst to hear from him for the first time following his appointment as a coach under Slot. Keep an eye on Liverpoolfc.com for those to be published soon.

The matchday takes us to the impressive Kai Tak Stadium and the pleasant experience of the roof being closed and air conditioning on. Fans take up the seats early to soak up every aspect of the occasion, and we can hear the Liverpool players have arrived before we see them - courtesy of the roar from the stands. Salah, of course, gets an enormous reception and there’s also equally high decibels whenever Florian Wirtz appears.

A number of poignant tributes take place in memory of Diogo Jota and Andre Silva before and during the game, including a mosaic formed by fans, a 20th-minute applause and a special celebration by AC Milan’s Rafael Leao after he opens the scoring.

The Reds are beaten 4-2 on the night, though both of their goals are beauties - Dominik Szoboszlai producing a peach of a curler and Cody Gakpo a peach of a header, with the attendance figure of 49,704 a record for a football fixture in Hong Kong.

“I think there have only been positives what we’ve experienced until now, apart maybe from the result today,” said Slot. “For the rest we could work really good. Most players have stayed fit and we’ve had a lot of help and support from the people of Hong Kong.”

Goodbye Hong Kong, hello Japan

Sunday morning sees us say farewell and thank you to Hong Kong. We have had a great time. As has become the daily custom, local supporters have again gathered outside the team hotel and this time there are lovely waves and goodbyes as we head off to Hong Kong International Airport to board our flight to Tokyo.

Jerzy Dudek has barely travelled a yard inside the airport before the 2005 Champions League hero is spotted by a young fan who certainly would not have been born when that famous night in Istanbul occurred. They take a picture together and it’s onward through security to grab a seat on our Japan Airlines cruiser.

The flight crew have clearly got the Liverpool fever, too, as several are holding up club scarves as they welcome us onto the plane. How nice of them. A journey of around four hours and 1,800 miles will carry the party to Japan.

Of course, this trip is particularly special for Wataru Endo as the midfielder returns to his own country with his club. And the pilot has a special message for the No.3 before taking off: “Endo-san, welcome home!”

Another announcement from the cockpit, towards the end of the flight, causes quite a stir. “Mt. Fuji is to your left,” is the message, prompting a rush from most passengers to catch a glimpse through the window.

We touch down just before 8pm local time, with Tokyo an hour ahead of Hong Kong. Beforehand, half-a-dozen players emulate The Beatles by trying out a traditional happi coat.

Night has very much fallen over the nation’s capital as we disembark and thoughts are drifting towards a little supper and bed.

It’ll be back to work for the squad on Monday as training resumes with a view to Wednesday’s friendly against Yokohama F. Marinos.

So for now, it’s jaane…

• Watch Yokohama F. Marinos v Liverpool live on All Red Video