There seemed no way back for Naby Keita the last time Liverpool lined up in the Champions League quarter-final.
The Guinean suffered the ignominy of being replaced three minutes before half-time at Real Madrid after the Reds had shipped two goals in their first leg in Spain, a deficit from which they were unable to recover.
That Klopp couldn’t wait until the interval to hook Keita appeared to speak volumes. Indeed, the midfielder didn’t play another minute that season, left to watch on as the Reds scrapped their way back into Europe’s premier cup competition.
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For Keita, it seemed an appropriately frustrating finale to a Liverpool career that only occasionally appeared capable of justifying the £52.75million fee to eventually prise him away from RB Leipzig in the summer of 2018 after a protracted chase.
Not so. Instead, the midfielder rolled up his sleeves, impressed during pre-season and has gone on to produce arguably his most consistently encouraging campaign at Anfield, his recovery from a minor knee issue meaning he will be in contention to feature here in Lisbon against Benfica in their latest Champions League quarter-final first leg this evening.
But when asked whether his time at Liverpool has made him a better player, the answer strikes at the heart of why Keita remains such an enigma.
"We can't really say that for the moment because I don't believe we've seen the real Naby Keita just yet,” he says. “I've had quite a few injuries so I'm trying to come back gradually to full form and fitness. The coach is trying to do that with me too. And it's my aim to try and establish myself and be seen in the world of football and I guess we'll see how that goes, either this season or the next.
"Getting regular games is something that motivates me even more. It's great to know when you're playing to not have the worry of getting injured. It hasn't always been easy in the past because when you are on the way back, you try to be a bit more careful at first. but recently I've felt like I'm 100% full-out and hopefully I can continue like that."
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Injuries have been the curse of Keita’s Liverpool career, the 27-year-old having suffered four different problems this season alone. Nevertheless, his tally of 25 games so far is only eight off his best total while with the Reds, achieved during his debut campaign in 2018/19.
That only 16 have been as a starter – and a mere four games for the full 90 minutes – underlines the intense competition for places in an ever-changing Liverpool midfield, although the ability to make five substitutions in European competition means, even if benched at the Estadio da Luz, Keita could expect to contribute.
“When you are talking about players such as Thiago, Hendo, Fabinho, Milner and so on, you are talking about players who have everything," he says.
“They are really talented and I have nothing but respect for them. I think it helps me to grow as a player myself too, and it is also a great source of motivation to continue taking up that challenge.
"When I was at Leipzig I saw a lot of the ball as all the build-up play would come through me. But here we're at such a big club and so it's not always that easy, as everyone tries to show for the ball and likes to be in possession. The biggest thing here is we play as a team, as a collective unit.
“But now as I start to grow in confidence a lot more, I will be the kind of player who helps his team a lot. I think I also have to work a lot on my level of aggression because here in England you need that as you have to win a lot of tackles. The manager loves that, when we win back possession in the middle of the park.”
Liverpool have lost on their last three visits to Benfica but have been eliminated only once in five previous meetings when beaten home and away in the Champions League round of 16 in 2006 as holders.
But with Benfica off the pace at the top of the Primeira Liga, the Reds are strong favourites to take control of the tie and continue their quest for an unprecedented quadruple.
And, speaking to the official Liverpool FC matchday programme, Keita says: “We've got these real opportunities ahead of us and we have to make sure we make use of them. This doesn't come around every season and so right now, this season, we can't say it's going to be easy, but it's a work in progress and we're on the case."
