IT’S been the toughest 12 months of Lucas Leiva’s life. A year ago this week the Liverpool midfielder was coming to terms with the devastating news that his season was over.

Having been stretchered off in the Reds’ League Cup tie with Chelsea, his worst fears were realised when a scan confirmed damage to the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.

The Brazil international’s dedication to his rehabilitation programme saw him back in action two months ahead of schedule on the pre-season tour of North America.

His return was a huge boost to new boss Brendan Rodgers but just five minutes into the Reds’ second league game of the season Lucas cut a forlorn figure.

The twinge the 25-year-old had felt in his thigh after taking a shot during the warm-up before the game against Manchester City had developed into something more serious.

Just five weeks after his comeback, Lucas was told he was facing another three months on the sidelines with a torn muscle in his right thigh.

It was a bitter pill to swallow and he has been sorely missed. Finally, having proved his fitness in the reserves’ game against Middlesbrough last week, Lucas is ready to relaunch his Liverpool career against Southampton at Anfield today.

“This has been a really hard year for me,” he admits. “I only had such a short period when I was fit and could play.

“In five years of being here I didn’t really have any problems at all. Then in the past year I’ve had two serious injuries.

“I had some bad days and some bad times when I really didn’t know what was going to happen.

“ I never thought I wouldn’t get back but to get the injuries so close together was very difficult to take.

“The medical staff don’t think they were linked as in terms of strength and mobility my knee was fine. I did every single test to check if I was ready to come back.

“It was just very unlucky. It was funny because I’m not a player who shoots much but that’s how I hurt my thigh. It was a big tear and that’s why it’s taken me so long to get back.

“At the beginning it was rest and then it was a case of building up the strength again with some running and then with some ball work.

“I tried to get my head right, keep going and stay focused on my rehab.

“I can’t change the past and now I’m looking forward.

“I played for the reserves last week and felt good. Just to put my boots on and feel the ball and make a challenge made me feel like a player again.

“It’s been a long way back but I really feel that I’m ready now to be available and hopefully I’ll play some part against Southampton. I can’t wait to walk out at Anfield again.”

Lucas, who has been restricted to just 73 minutes of league football in 2012, admits the support he received from Liverpool fans during his absence provided inspiration as he battled to get back.

Prior to his knee injury, he was enjoying the best form of his blossoming career having established himself as the best holding midfielder in the Premier League.

He’s on a mission to hit those heights once again and reward the supporters for their backing.

“My family, friends, team-mates, my manager and the fans all helped keep me strong,” he added.

“I had so many messages from the fans.

“When you don’t play you think that people will forget about you but actually it’s been the opposite.

“That’s been important and I really appreciate the support they give to me. I still need that support now.

“It’s a process where I will get better with games. I’m not thinking my first game back will be my best game.

“I have done everything I could do and now I’m hoping to get a good run of games and training sessions as that’s the only way I will get back to the level I was at before.

“A year ago, before that game at Chelsea, maybe I was playing my best football for Liverpool. I really believe I can get to that level again and I want to get there as soon as possible.

“Hopefully I’ll be able to help the team a lot this season. It’s getting to an important part of the season and the manager will need everyone fit.”

Liverpool go into today’s game down in 12th place after seeing their eight-game unbeaten run ended by Tottenham on Wednesday night.

However, Lucas has seen enough to be convinced that Rodgers’ side will climb the table over the coming weeks.

“In a lot of the games we’ve had very good performances but not got the results we deserved,” he said. “Tottenham was a good example of that. They started really well and after 20 minutes were 2-0 up but after that we took over and had enough chances to turn the game our way.

“It’s a process where everyone is learning under the new manager and we will keep improving.

“Hopefully we will get a good run of games in December and January and get as many points as we can. If we can put together three or four wins in a row we will be up there challenging for fourth place maybe.

“We are only 10 points behind Chelsea in third place. It’s very tight as everyone has been dropping points. This is a crucial period of the season for us.”