FeatureMeet the Academy: 'This is what I worked for and I feel at home' - a first chat with Armin Pecsi

The wind in Kirkby.

Other than that, life is extremely good for the summer arrival from Puskas Akademia.

The goalkeeper has already played at Anfield, trained regularly with the senior team, impressed in the U21s and settled well on Merseyside.

"It was very nice to come here," Pecsi tells Liverpoolfc.com in his first interview in English. "Everybody helped me a lot. I feel at home now.

"When I first heard it could be possible that I could sign for Liverpool, it was a proud feeling and good feeling that the years I put the work in, I can make a step up in my life and my career, and I can come here and learn from world-class players and experienced coaches.

"It was a really good feeling but this is what I always wanted. This is what I worked for."

Signing his Reds contract was a definite pinch-yourself moment for him and his family.

Austrian-born Pesci had grown up in Hungary a Liverpool supporter wearing shirts with Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres on the back and admiring stoppers Pepe Reina and Alisson Becker.

"I don't know how my dad became a Liverpool fan but I became a Liverpool fan because of him obviously," Armin says. "When I was a kid, I started to watch the games with him. I have a little brother who is also a Liverpool fan – he's a very, very big fan.

"It was a dream come true and a proud moment for the family, for me to sign for Liverpool. It's just my motivation to keep working."

What set Pecsi on his path towards becoming a Liverpool player was a conversation with a coach all the way back when he was 11 years old.

It's time to make a decision.

Pecsi had been representing two teams at different age groups, the older one as 'keeper and the other banging in goals as a striker.

"It wasn't so hard because I didn't know it was a big decision," he now reflects. "I think I made a good decision!"

His first steps were taken with hometown club ETO FC Gyor and then with Puskas Akademia, with his time at the latter including a loan at Csakvar.

Pecsi debuted at senior level when he was 16 and had clocked up just shy of 50 appearances in the Hungarian top flight by the time of his departure.

All that led him towards becoming a nominee for the prestigious Golden Boy award in 2025.

Then Liverpool came calling and he was playing at Anfield a few weeks later in a pre-season friendly with Athletic Club.

"Life changed a little bit but I would say it changed so much because my job is still the same, just in a different place and at a bigger club," says Pecsi. "My motivations are the same or even higher – to try to get better every day. I would say it's changed but not too much.

"It was a great feeling [to play at Anfield]. My hopes now are just to get better, to improve myself.

"When I play with the U21s, to help the team with some good performances to get the three points and my performance to be stable and be good. And also do my best in training.

"Learn, improve, get better – these are my things. And when I have games with the U21s or when I have the chance [in the senior team], just play my best game."

Pecsi's adaptation to the Reds has been made somewhat easier with the presence of fellow Hungarians Dominik Szoboszlai and Milos Kerkez.

"They helped me a lot, especially Dom because he's here for a longer time. He helped me a lot," the 21-year-old says.

"When I want to ask him something or get help, he always helps me. I think we get along good. It was good that sometimes I could speak to someone Hungarian or if I didn't understand someone or ask about something or how things work here, it was easier to explain in Hungarian and he was here.

"Of course when it comes to football and we speak about football, in this part he can also help me a lot. When I see the guys or him in training, it's a big inspiration in the big level they show every day."

Pecsi's position means he often has the unenviable task in training of keeping out what have become trademark Szoboszlai strikes.

As testing as that is, the exposure to such quality on a regular basis is reaping rewards.

On facing his compatriot, Pecsi shares: "You can expect from any distance he will go for power! But he will also go for accuracy.

"There are some really, really good finishers on the first-team side. Everybody strikes the ball a little bit differently. It makes it difficult for the goalkeepers because you cannot expect how they will shoot because some players have more techniques and they also want to trick you.

"It was difficult at first but I think month by month or week by week, I could get to know them and it was easier. But this is also pushing me to get to their level.

"But Dom's shots, I think everybody knows now. Hungarians knew it before but now I think everybody in England who likes football and maybe everyone in world football knows. He has a unique strike."

Pecsi, who was nominated for Premier League 2 Player of the Month in January, also feels privileged to be learning directly from what he considers to be a goalkeeping legend.

According to him, only by being in such close proximity to Alisson can you pick up the intricacies of the craft to take your game to the next level.

"Every detail of him is so perfect and is the same every time," Pecsi says of the Brazilian. "He makes things look so easy – and this is the hard part, to learn this and to make this happen on the pitch.

"He's a really nice guy and it's good to see him in training – same with Giorgi [Mamardashvili] and Freddie [Woodman] because all of them are a little bit different. They're all top, top goalkeepers. From everyone you can learn from something."

Nine months on from arriving, Pecsi is nicely slotted in that 'keeping unit and club as a whole.

Away from the pitch, his girlfriend has joined him in England from Hungary and both enjoy exploring the country they now call home when schedules allow.

"When I have time, I like to grab a coffee, go for a walk when it's not so rainy!" he says as this conversation at the AXA Training Centre begins to wrap up.

"To be honest, I spend a lot of time in here. I'm not in a big rush to go home, I take my time here in the gym or take time with recovery.

"Sometimes when I get home, I just want to be chill and just prepare for the next day.

"On days off or something, I like to play sports – anything with friends or family if they can come. I love to play darts."

How good is he with the arrows?

Before walking off, he replies with a cheeky grin: "I think you should ask some guys from the U21s!"

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• Prince Cisse's dad Djibril, new position and managerial ambitions
• How an Instagram message led to Kyle Kelly representing St. Kitts and Nevis
• The story of Kornel Misciur's hunt for a Jerzy Dudek selfie
• How Tommy Pilling continues to carry on his family's LFC legacy
• The mature, driven and talented Carter Pinnington