"Did I ever think I was going to be playing for Liverpool in the Premier League? Probably not, but when I'm called upon, I just wanted to do my best."

This time last season, Freddie Woodman was sidelined with injury for Preston North End as they narrowly avoided relegation from the Championship.

Fast forward a year and he was thrown into a crucial Merseyside derby after Giorgi Mamardashvili was injured in the second half of Liverpool's win at Everton.

"It's tough," Woodman, 29, said of being a third-choice keeper. "I am new to this role. When the opportunity came along I was a bit unsure whether to do it and as a third choice I am still learning on the job.

"I quickly realised that my game time is going to be limited and that I would probably be called upon for 10-20 minutes, and when that time comes, I just wanted to be prepared.

"And so the eight months where I'm training, I'm just thinking about those 10 minutes, those 20 minutes, where you are nervous, but you can rely on all the preparation that you've done - and that's what I tried to do.

"Being third choice is, from what I've seen, more important than what I thought coming in.

"You are trying to have a relationship with the lads, so if Dom [Szoboszlai] wants to do extra free-kicks, I want to be there to help him. If Mo [Salah] wants to do extra shooting, I want to be there to help him.

"So it's just trying to find a different role within the team and realising how important it is."

Woodman's top-flight debut for Liverpool capped a superb weekend for his family, with his father Andy - a former goalkeeper, who now manages Bromley - celebrating promotion to League One for the first time in club history on Saturday.

"I was actually enjoying this Merseyside derby at the new stadium and then I was chucked into it at the deep end, so it was a good weekend for [my] family," Woodman said.

"Yeah, it was a little nerve-racking. But the nerves fuel you to want to do well and not to let people down.

"You come on and you think about the eight months that have gone past where you've worked every day for this one moment. When you're called upon, you just want to be reliable.

"That's what it feels like and to be honest, I was happy to get over the line but then to win it the way we did [with Van Dijk's 100th-minute header] was incredible."

Read more on Woodman's life as a third-choice goalkeeper