Lucas Leiva has spoken of his aims to put injury problems behind him having featured in all of Liverpool's pre-season games so far this summer.

The Brazilian played 45 minutes as the Reds swept to a 4-1 victory over Valerenga on Wednesday night, courtesy of strikes from Luis Alberto, Iago Aspas, Martin Kelly and Raheem Sterling.

Lucas injured knee ligaments in November 2011, before returning to suffer a thigh injury against Manchester City in August 2012.

However, after completing every training session of the current pre-season, and playing his part in each of the Reds' six wins, he feels his body has adapted - and he's looking forward to next season.

"It's clear to me that I'm in better shape than last season," Lucas told LFC TV. "I put all my injuries behind me and I haven't missed any game or any training session during this pre-season.

"So that means my body has adapted really well already. We will see how this season goes, but it's looking very positive and there is still some time before the season starts.

"The manager got to see all the players against Valerenga as there were two teams who played for 45 minutes. It meant he could give minutes to everyone so they could be ready for the beginning of the season. Winning the game was important.

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"Unfortunately we conceded our first goal of pre-season, but I think there were a lot of positives to take from the game.

"Saturday [against Celtic in Dublin] will be the last game of our pre-season and it will be another great test for us. Then we can be ready for the new season."

Fabio Borini and Martin Kelly were both introduced at half-time by Rodgers.

Borini went close to finding the net on several occasions, while Kelly nodded Liverpool's third goal of the game.

Both were left sidelined for long spells during last season - and Lucas insists he is delighted to see the pair making steady recoveries.

"It's always the hardest stage of the rehab [making your first steps back into the side]," said the midfielder.

"They are still coming back but they took part in the pre-season and I'm sure that with minutes and training sessions and games they will be ready very soon.

"I'm glad for them because I have been in the same place as them and I know how difficult it is to come back."

Jordan Henderson was handed the captain's armband at the start of the match as Brendan Rodgers made wholesale changes to the side that started Steven Gerrard's testimonial against Olympiacos on Saturday.

Lucas believes the move to install Henderson, who already has 92 Liverpool appearances under his belt, shows the faith Rodgers has in the 23-year-old.

"He was the captain of England at the European U21 Championships this summer, so he's got leadership in him," said Lucas.

"Today the manager gave him the armband, which means he trusts him a lot and in the end we need all the players to be confident, and I think today will give him a really big boost."

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Lucas played no part when the Reds last visited Oslo to face Valerenga in the summer of 2011.

But the Brazilian is well aware of the Reds' passionate fanbase in Scandinavia - and he was keen to thank them for their support on Wednesday night.

Lucas said: "Liverpool come here to Norway very often to play and we have a great relationship with the fans, so today was another day for the supporters and we got a great reception from the fans. We won and that's important."