Shoot! would like to wish Brazil international and Liverpool star Lucas Leiva many happy returns as the midfielder celebrates his 30th birthday today!

Lucas, who arrived at Anfield back in July 2007 following his reported £5m switch from Gremio, has since gone on to make over 320 appearances for The Reds, scoring six goals and providing 18 assists.

The Brazilian ace, who helped the Premier League club lift the 2012 League Cup after defeating Cardiff City on penalties (3-2) in the final – his only honour with Liverpool, so far – has become a firm fans’ favourite, despite being linked with a move away from Merseyside this month.

The 30-year-old has featured 15 times in all competitions for Jurgen Klopp’s side so far this 2016-17 season, including captaining The Reds during Sunday’s 0-0 draw against League Two Plymouth Argyle in the FA Cup third round.

So, to celebrate Lucas’ latest milestone, Shoot! have dug up five facts you may not know about the Liverpool defensive midfielder…

Olympic bronze medallist

Lucas was part of the Brazil squad that came third in the men’s football tournament at the 2008 Olympic Games in China.

Brazil lost 3-0 to the hands of Argentina in the semi-finals, before defeating Belgium 3-0 in the bronze medal match.

Liverpool’s longest-serving player

Lucas is Liverpool’s longest-serving player, having been at Anfiled since moving from Gremio back in 2007.

Next on the list is fellow midfielder Jordan Henderson, who joined The Reds from Sunderland back in June 2011.

Midfield menace

Between 2010 and 2016, Lucas topped the charts for the most tackles (average) per game in the Premier League in five of the six seasons, according to WhoScored.com.

Uncle Leivinha

Liverpool star Lucas Lucas is the nephew of former Brazilian footballer Leivinha.

Now 67; the former Palmeiras and Atletico Madrid forward earned 21 international caps for his country, scoring seven times, and was part of the Brazilian squad that finished fourth at the 1974 World Cup in West Germany.

Followed in the footsteps of Zico, Robinho and Kaka

The Liverpool star became the youngest man ever to receive Placar magazine’s Bola de Ouro (Golden Ball), an annual honour given to the Campeonato Brasileiro’s (Brazilian top-flight) best player.

Previous winners include the illustrious likes of Zico, Falcão, Careca, Alex, Romário, Robinho, Kaká and Carlos Tevez, meanwhile familiar names such as Neymar (2011), Ronaldinho (2012) and Manchester City’s Gabriel Jesus (2016) have won this gong since.