Lucas Pezzini Leiva (born 9 January 1987), known as Lucas or Lucas Leiva (Brazilian Portuguese: [ˈlukɐz ˈlejvɐ]), is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder for Grêmio, Liverpool, Lazio and the Brazil national team.
Lucas began his career as a box-to-box midfielder at Grêmio, where he won the Campeonato Gaúcho in 2006 and 2007. In July 2007 he moved to Liverpool, where he made 346 appearances over the course of a decade, winning the League Cup in 2012. Between 2010 and 2016, Lucas led the Premier League in tackles per game five times in six seasons. He has the second most tackles in Premier League history, and has made into the top 10 for most Premier League appearances by Brazilians. He joined Lazio in 2017, winning a Coppa Italia title before briefly returning to Grêmio in 2022.
A Brazilian international from 2007 to 2013, he has earned 24 caps and represented Brazil at the 2008 Olympics and the 2011 Copa América, winning a bronze medal at the former. He also captained the under-20 team to victory in the 2007 South American Youth Championship.
Born in Dourados, Mato Grosso do Sul, Lucas began his career at Grêmio as a midfielder in 2005. The following year was a successful year for him, as Grêmio won the Rio Grande do Sul state championship (the Campeonato Gaúcho) for the first time since 2001, and also came third in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A. Lucas also became the youngest player ever to receive Placar magazine's Bola de Ouro (Golden Ball), given to the best player in the Campeonato Brasileiro – an honour previously won by the likes of Zico, Falcão, Careca, Alex, Romário, Robinho, Kaká and Carlos Tevez.
His form in 2006 led to reported interest from many major European clubs including Milan, Palermo, Manchester United, Inter Milan, Juventus, Atlético Madrid and Barcelona. It was Liverpool that proved most attractive to the player, however, and on 13 May 2007, the club confirmed they had signed the player from Grêmio before the start of the 2007–08 season. The transfer fee was in the region of £6 million.
On 26 July 2007, he was officially unveiled as a Liverpool player for a fee of £5 million and was given international clearance to compete in the final of the Barclays Asia Trophy.
By late November 2007, manager Rafael Benítez gave Lucas his chance to start a match in the Liverpool midfield after easing him in during his first few months at the club. Lucas scored his first goal for Liverpool on 26 January 2008 when he curled a 25-yard shot into the top corner in a 5–2 win against Havant & Waterlooville in the FA Cup, becoming the first-ever Brazilian to score for Liverpool.
The start of the 2008–09 season signified an important turning point for his career. Many commentators expected him to step up to the next level after completing his first season with the Reds. The Brazilian got off to a good start with a well taken opening goal in a 2–1 friendly win over Swiss side Lucerne in July. He impressed in pre-season games but missed the start of Premier League season due to his selection for Brazil in the Olympics.
Lucas returned with a bronze medal and Benítez had high hopes for the Brazilian's future, stating, "This season he will improve because he is a very, very good professional and has experience of the Olympic Games." Lucas noted that Liverpool's squad was much improved from the previous season and relished the opportunity to compete for trophies, despite the increased difficulty of getting a first-team place. However, after a number of disappointing performances, both critics and fans voiced concerns about Lucas' quality and his confidence was further knocked when Liverpool fans booed him after a lacklustre 0–0 draw against Fulham. The criticism irked Benítez and he responded with a passionate defence of the player, saying that "people just don't know how good Lucas is." Benítez also underlined Lucas' credentials, stating that he had been captain for both Grêmio and his national youth team, and that completing for place against Steven Gerrard, Xabi Alonso and Javier Mascherano was inherently difficult. Lucas' performances in December 2008 for Liverpool drew him much praise from pundits, the highlight being his performance in the 5–1 thrashing of Newcastle United, where he provided an assist for Steven Gerrard. Lucas was sent-off in a FA Cup fourth round match against Merseyside rivals Everton, which Liverpool lost. This compounded his growing unpopularity amongst Liverpool's supporters, after he gave away a late penalty in Liverpool's previous match, a 1–1 draw with Wigan Athletic.
On 14 March 2009, Lucas played a key role in Liverpool's 4–1 victory over Manchester United at Old Trafford, starting in place of Xabi Alonso. On 14 April, Lucas played against Chelsea in the Champions League, in place of Steven Gerrard. He scored a goal with his long-range effort in the 81st minute deflected off Michael Essien and past goalkeeper Petr Čech to make the score 3–3. Dirk Kuyt's header a minute later briefly gave Liverpool the lead, but Frank Lampard's 89th-minute strike leveled the score to 4–4, with Chelsea winning 7–5 on aggregate to go through to the semi-finals of the tournament.
On 3 May 2009, Lucas scored his first Premier League goal, a header from a free-kick in 3–0 win against Newcastle United.
During the 2009–10 pre-season period, Lucas showed good form scoring Liverpool's only goal in a 2–1 loss against Atlético Madrid. This form earned praise from manager Rafael Benítez, and gained him a start against Tottenham Hotspur for the opening game of the 2009–10 season on 16 August. Liverpool lost 2–1, but Lucas earned praise for a solid performance all round.
On 8 April 2010, Lucas scored his second European goal for Liverpool, scoring in a 4–1 (5–3 aggregate) quarter-final win over Benfica in the UEFA Europa League quarter-finals.
In pre-season games before the 2010–11 season, Lucas was made captain of a youthful Liverpool side against Grasshopper. On 16 September 2010, Lucas scored his sixth goal for Liverpool shortly after replacing Ryan Babel in the club's first UEFA Europa League group stage match against Steaua București. The goal was Liverpool's third in a 4–1 victory and was scored from 22 yards. On 13 November 2010, Lucas was sent-off for the second time in his Liverpool career after being shown a second yellow card in injury time in a 2–0 defeat to Stoke City. On 6 December, Lucas was voted the fan's pick for Man of the Match on the official Liverpool website. He provided an assist for Ryan Babel, in a 3–0 win over Aston Villa on 6 December.
Lucas was awarded Liverpool Player of the Year Award in May 2011. On 30 March 2011, Lucas signed a new long-term contract at Liverpool.
After a good run of form for Liverpool, his season was cut short on 1 December 2011, when he suffered an ACL injury after colliding with Juan Mata in a 2–0 win over Chelsea in the quarter-finals of the League Cup.
On 10 April 2013, Lucas signed a new long-term deal with Liverpool keeping him at the club until 2018. He was a consistent starter in the opening few months of the 2013–14 season as Liverpool put up an unexpected title challenge, though his season was again cut short by injury. His good form saw him make a return to the Brazil squad.
In the initial run of games within the 2014–15 Premier League and other cup competitions, Lucas was rotated in and out of the squad, leading to speculation surrounding a move away from Anfield. He made his comeback, however, as a starter against Ludogorets in the UEFA Champions League with a solid good display. His fine form continued and he started games against Stoke City, Leicester City and Sunderland. Lucas' good run continued as Liverpool then played against Manchester United, Arsenal, Burnley, Swansea City, Leicester City and Sunderland out of which Liverpool only lost to Manchester United and then achieved five games without defeat in a row with Lucas as an integral member of the squad. Lucas was on the substitute bench on 22 March in a 2–1 defeat against Manchester United after coming back from a six-week injury layoff.