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Liverpool defender Kostas Tsimikas has revealed how his teammates are keeping busy during their preseason tour while also naming the Reds' UNO kings.
The 26-year-old established himself as an essential member of Jurgen Klopp's squad last term. He made 26 appearances, deputizing for Andy Robertson at the left-back position.
Tsimikas' fine season culminated in scoring the winning penalty in the FA Cup final shootout against Chelsea.
The Greek international was asked what the squad had been up to away from the pitch during their various preseason adventures. He claimed that the legendary card game UNO is usually top of the agenda.
At a hotel in Salzburg, Tsimikas told Liverpool's official website:
"I've only played one time and I finished last! But in my opinion, I think one of the best is Lucho [Luis Diaz] or Thiago. These two guys are top professionals at UNO.
"Of course, everything we do is very competitive, always we try to win. But at the end, only the smile is on our faces and I think this is most important.
"We didn't play table tennis (yet). At the moment we played UNO, but I think the next days maybe we will play a little bit of table tennis because last year we also made the tournament and everybody will want to win [against] Mo because obviously he is first."
Liverpool defender believes building team spirit is vital for success
The Reds put on an awe-inspiring performance in their most recent preseason as they thrashed RB Leipzig 5-0, with new forward Darwin Nunez scoring four times.
Tsimikas has since revealed that he formed a close friendship with Mohamed Salah during his first preseason at Liverpool two years ago. The full-back spoke of the importance of being close to his teammates, as he explained:
"It's very, very important because it gives us time to know each other. The way we play, the way he is thinking even if it is not in football.
"It makes you come a little bit more close to each other and I think it is very, very important for the year. When we are close together we are like a family. We fight for each other. It's very important.
"We always look after our colleagues and we want the best mood for them. That's why we achieved so many things last year and hopefully this year we can achieve even more. I'm close with everybody but normally I sit with Latin American players; Thiago or Adrian, or Mo of course. Or Joel. We sit all together, having fun. But with everyone we chill together and we speak about everything."
