Fabio Carvalho has said that he is determined to prove himself to new Liverpool boss Arne Slot during pre-season, as he bids to be a part of the Merseyside club's first-team squad next term.
The 21-year-old arrived at Liverpool from Fulham in May 2022, and he has made 21 appearances for the Reds in all competitions, with those outings coming during the 2022-23 campaign.
Carvalho spent the first half of last season on loan at RB Leipzig, and he made 15 appearances for the Bundesliga club before linking up with Hull City for the second half of the campaign.
The attacker impressed for the Championship club, managing nine goals and two assists in 22 appearances, and he is now back with Liverpool this summer.
Carvalho is said to again be wanted on loan by a number of teams, but he is determined to prove himself to Liverpool boss Slot in the coming matches.
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Carvalho is with the Liverpool squad in the United States
Slot has told Carvalho that he views him as a winger, but the former Portugal Under-21s international still believes that his best position is the number 10.
"We spoke about (my position) and he told me to try and settle on the wing but obviously I know where I play best and I feel that is as a No 10. I'm just going to do what he wants me to do and just work as hard as I can for him," Carvalho told reporters.
"He's giving me good instructions and motivating me a lot in training and giving me that confidence. We've had a few conversations (about future) which I'm not going to go into detail about but he wants me to get my head down and work hard and see where that goes."
Carvalho also opened up on his time away from the club, believing it to be "crucial" to his development.
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Carvalho calls time away from Liverpool "crucial"
"It was crucial, I needed game time and I was happy when I was playing. Every footballer wants to be playing week in and week out and I feel I got the best of myself when I was there and playing," he added.
"That's what it is all about. Not just for me but for everyone involved. There's good chances for the young players (in this pre-season), for myself as well. It's a good chance for everyone to put their foot down and stamp their mark."
Carvalho started Liverpool's 1-0 win over Real Betis on Friday evening, playing 64 minutes of the pre-season friendly.
The forward will now be hoping to retain his spot in the XI when Slot's side continue their preparations for the new campaign with a clash against Arsenal on July 31.
Matt Law
