Liverpool striker Danny Ings has revealed he spent time studying the methods of manager Jurgen Klopp during a lengthy injury lay-off last season.
Ings sustained an anterior cruciate ligament injury ahead of Klopp s appointment in October, ruling him out for the rest of the 2015-16 campaign.
The former Burnley frontman has made a promising start to pre-season, though, scoring in victories over Tranmere Rovers and Wigan Athletic.
And Ings says his watching brief during his time on the sidelines has given him a head start in preparations for the new Premier League season.
The training is very intense, very tactical and we re learning every day, he told the club s official website.
I m playing catch-up really because I obviously didn t get to train with [Klopp] and the other staff, and get to see the methods.
What I did do was watch from the sideline and try to pick up as much as I could. I’m just trying to put that into games now.
My biggest aim is to get fit and get to how I was before I got injured.
Injuries are horrible for every player. I ve had injuries in the past and I ve always said that we earn our money when we re injured, because it s the hardest time.
Playing football is the easy part because you re enjoying it. I m just glad to be back out there – I can put all that behind me and keep scoring goals.