Former Brighton midfielder Alexis MacAllister has claimed that he had to ‘lock himself in a gym’ to adapt to the physicality of the Premier League.
MacAliister left the Seagulls for Liverpool this summer after the Reds triggered his release clause for around £35 million.
He starred at Brighton which lead to his move, but said it took a long time being in the gym before he felt he could deal with the physical demands of the Premier League.
“In reference to my evolution as a player, I think I have improved a lot physically,” he told Argentinian outlet La Nacion.
“The Premier League, if not the most physical league, is close. And well, from the first moment I arrived in Brighton, without a doubt it was one of the things I had the most difficulty with.
“I have always struggled a lot and the first year at Brighton did not go in the best way, it did not go as I expected or as I wanted and it was a moment in which, as always, the support of my family was very important.”
Alexis MacAllister on adapting to a new country
MacAllister went on to explain exactly the struggles he had alongside the physicality, in terms of moving to a new country.
“I had to lock myself in a gym and work twice as hard to keep up. I knew that I had the qualities to be able to play in the Premier League, but physically I was not up to the task.
“It was bad because it’s not nice not to play or be away from your family and not be able to do what you like.
“But at the same time, it helped me a lot to learn, to realise that you always have to give a little more and be better. So it was, I would tell you, the most difficult time, but also the time in which I learned the most.”