Jarrell Quansah revealed his half-time substitution during Liverpool's opening game of the season against Ipswich was "a kick up the backside".
The 21-year-old defender was hooked at the interval by manager Arne Slot and replaced by Ibrahima Konate during a 2-0 victory over the Premier League newcomers last month.
Quansah has yet to feature again for Liverpool this term, but he was named in Ben Futcher's first England Under-21 squad and awarded man of the match in Friday's goalless draw with Northern Ireland.
When asked about Slot's decision to take him off, Quansah said: "It's a long season, I have the whole season to prove myself.
"It's given me a kick up the backside, you could say. I'll keep grafting on the training pitch and that's all it is.
"It's never a nice feeling as a footballer to be subbed off at half-time but at the end of the day it was the gaffer's decision but it was the right one.
"It obviously worked because we won, so I can only focus on myself, improve myself, kick forward and move on to the next game. I'm staying ready for whenever it comes."
Quansah is competing for a starting spot at club level against Virgil van Dijk.
The academy graduate revealed how much the Liverpool skipper has helped him, saying: "The way Virgil talks you through the game, I've never heard anyone like it.
"He might annoy us at times but it's all for the greater good.
"With all the experience he has and the situations he's been in, it's only fair that he can share his knowledge so we can be the best players we can.
"I'll have to be one of the best centre-halves in Europe if I'm starting (for Liverpool).
"It's always been the goal since I was young, I've always wanted to be the best in the world in my position and so I'm striving for that and it doesn't matter how long it takes, I'm not going to get too disheartened if it's not 2026 (World Cup), I know what I need to do and hopefully I keep improving."
Quansah knows the more game time he has at Liverpool, the more likely he is to earn a first senior England cap.
"The more and more games I play, it will come and it's about taking that opportunity."
