Liverpool on Wednesday announced that new midfield signing Naby Keita will play wearing the No.8 shirt last worn by club legend and former captain Steven Gerrard.
A RB Leipzig player in the German Bundesliga, Keita will officially become a Liverpool player on July 1.
"It was an incredible day for me," Keita, 23, told Liverpool's website. "He gave me the No. 8 jersey. When it happened, it was a surprise and I didn't expect it.
"When he came in, I looked at him and said 'Wow,' because he is a legend. He is somebody who always showed respect, who gave his all on the pitch, somebody who is loved here. If somebody like that gives you his shirt number, it's not to play around with, it is to try (to) do as much as he did. That's my motivation."
Gerrard recently left his post as Liverpool's under-18s coach to take charge of Scottish Rangers this summer.
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