when he was sidelined.

Lucas' work-rate, positional sense and distribution have been sorely missed over the last four months. His on-field presence took a tremendous amount of pressure off of his teammates, allowing them to better express themselves during games.

@Lucasleiva87: My rehab is going well and hopefully I will be fit for next season. It was a bad injury so I need to recover properly to be strong again.

Jay Spearing has played majority of the games at defensive midfielder since Lucas went down. Before the injury, the Brazilian international had made 15 appearances, and was leading the Premier League in tackles (with 68 in 12 games) when he was sidelined.

His rehab program is being supervised by LFC's medical staff, and the company of his teammates and fans boosts the injured midfielder's spirits.

Liverpool's campaign was irreparably damaged when Lucas Leiva suffered a season-ending knee injury on Nov. 29. His loss created a void in the LFC midfield, but he expects to be ready to fill it by the start of next season.

Have a question for Marcus Kwesi O'Mard? Send it to him via Twitter at @NESNsoccer, NESN Soccer's Facebook page or send it here. He will pick a few questions to answer every week for his mailbag.

Lucas hopes to return to the favor when re-takes the field next summer.

Photo via LiverpoolFC.tv

He returned to his native Brazil for surgery in the days immediately following the injury. After recuperating in a familiar climate and spending time with family and friends, the 25-year-old returned to Liverpool in late January.

On Sunday, Lucas Tweeted an update on his condition:

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