Adrian has been thrown in at the deep end since joining Liverpool on Aug. 5 but he's shown he is more than up to the challenge. Catherine Ivill/Getty Images

What could possibly happen next?

Liverpool goalkeeper Adrian wondered that on Monday; a day without training or travel commitments afforded him the chance to catch his breath and reflect on everything that has happened during a "crazy" 14 days, which contained enough incidents -- including an awful gaffe at Southampton -- to cover an entire career.

Has more ever happened to a "backup" goalkeeper in such a short space of time? Instead of the usual spell of settling in, getting to know his teammates and learning the nuances of his new team, Adrian was pressed into action on the season's opening weekend due to Alisson's injury. Since then, he's picked up two league wins and was integral to the Reds' UEFA Super Cup victory, the first major trophy of his career. The stunning start to his time at Anfield has already made him a cult hero.

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During the early hours of last Thursday in Istanbul, Adrian stitched himself into the fabric of Liverpool's proud European history. He thwarted Tammy Abraham with a trailing right foot to win the Super Cup against Chelsea 5-4 on penalties, enabling the club to lift a second continental trophy under Jurgen Klopp following June's Champions League triumph.

In that match, the Spaniard squeezed the multiple highs and lows a goalkeeper can experience into a manic 120 minutes. He produced a crucial save at the feet of Mateo Kovacic on 32 minutes, before being beaten by Olivier Giroud's low finish, which skidded underneath him. Adrian did brilliantly to thwart Abraham with his feet in extra time, but then was harshly adjudged to have impeded the 20-year-old in the area and was sat down by Jorginho's cool technique from the resulting spot-kick.

Adrian then denied Mason Mount late on before his moment of glory arrived. When the 32-year-old saved from Abraham in the shootout, grabbed his towel and slid to his knees awaiting the celebratory scrum from his teammates, it felt as though he was living somebody else's life.

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Adrian's individual honour roll had read zero before that Super Cup trophy and only a few weeks earlier, he was training at semi-professional side Unión Deportiva Pilas in Spain's sixth tier, with personal goalkeeping coach Pedro Illanes and a physical trainer, to keep in shape after running down his contract at West Ham United.

He knew he would receive offers during the summer, especially from teams around Spain, and so made the decision to work out in his birthplace of Seville. Adrian was on the verge of accepting a proposal from Real Valladolid before a "bombshell" call from Liverpool considerably altered his trajectory.

By the end of last season it was clear that if Simon Mignolet departed Anfield in search of regular starts, the club would replace him with an equally experienced keeper to deputise for Alisson. Adrian was seen as the "perfect solution" (to borrow Klopp's description), having made 150 appearances during a six-year spell with West Ham. He was familiar with the demands of the league, had dealt with pressure situations and did not allow mistakes to affect him from week to week.

The club's homework on him was extensive: they had watched him at Real Betis and followed him with a closer eye when he moved to east London in 2013. They liked his anticipation, distribution and courage: he had huge character, which is an important element in an unforgiving position. When Club Brugge made Liverpool an offer totalling £8 million for Mignolet, a call was put into Adrian immediately to say he was the first choice to be Klopp's new No.2.

Adrian's heroics in the UEFA Super Cup helped immediately endear him to his new teammates and manager as Liverpool defeated Chelsea on penalties. Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images

The "bombshell" conversation, as the keeper labelled it, came as a surprise: he was not expecting to return to England, especially to join the champions of Europe. There was no hesitation from Adrian once the offer came, only details to sort out: He offered apologies to Real Valladolid and two days before his Aug. 5 move to Merseyside, he informed Pilas' sporting director Jose Maria Moreno that he would no longer need to use their facilities. That goodbye was followed with a load of bags that contained his old kits, boots and other memorabilia as well as a handwritten letter and gift card.

"In gratitude for your hospitality and availability, I want to present UD Pilas with this voucher for sports materials and equipment to continue growing," it read. "Thank you so much for everything! I wish you all the best."

The gift certificate helped the club purchase 20 balls and other necessities for the season, the time spent with the goalie turning Moreno into a Liverpool fan. (The sporting director couldn't bear to watch the shootout against Chelsea, but went wild when his son told him Adrian had saved the decisive penalty to win the Super Cup.)

How Adrian performed in the Super Cup, despite not having time to prepare, was "incredible," according to the manager, who saluted him as a "proper personality in the dressing room as well."