Last season was a year of lessons for Jurgen Klopp and the rest of his coaching staff.
An unprecedented Covid-19 pandemic made things off the pitch increasingly difficult and Liverpool decided against recruiting a replacement for long-serving defender Dejan Lovren.
A decision that, in hindsight, would put Liverpool and Klopp on the back foot.
As the story goes, Liverpool's season was savaged by injuries to those at the heart of their defence, as Joel Matip, Joe Gomez and Virgil Van Dijk were all confined to the physio room with long-term injuries.
But amongst all of the madness of the 2020/21 season, Fabinho was a beacon of light.
The Brazilian was forced to deputise at centre-back for large parts of the campaign.
Despite putting in vintage performances that the likes of Sami Hypia and Jamie Carragher would have been proud of, Fabinho's presence in midfield felt largely forgotten for large stages.
As Liverpool saw their season nearly crash down in the final weeks of the campaign, as Klopp's men faced the prospect of Europa League football for the first time since 2016, Fabinho was restored back into his usual place at the foot of Liverpool's midfield.
The Brazilian's return to midfield allowed Thiago Alcantara to find his best form and flourish in the final weeks of the season, as Liverpool somehow clinched a third place on the final day of the season following eight wins from their final ten fixtures.
However, despite Fabinho's overriding success since he joined Liverpool in the summer of 2018, he has become something of a forgotten man on the international stage under Brazil current boss Tite, certainly when it's come to the 60-year-old picking his midfield options.
Fabinho, who did deputise at right-back during his time at AS Monaco, has been utilised more often as a full-back by Tite, to the baffling amusement of those who watch him dominate every other week at Anfield.
Brazil's 1-1 draw against Ecuador on Sunday evening was the first time that Tite had fielded Fabinho, Firmino, and Alisson Becker in their rightful positions from the start of a match.
As mentioned, the trio did all start during a friendly between the USA and Brazil in 2018. However, Fabinho was confined to his less-favoured position as Real Madrid's Casemiro took up the anchor role at the base of Tite's prefered 4-3-3.
Since Liverpool acquired the services of the Brazilian from Monaco, Fabinho has the platform of success for Klopp's midfield as his ruthless no-nonsense approach has seen him hailed as one of the best holding midfielders's in Europe.
Although Fabinho's fellow compatriots at Liverpool, Firmino and Alisson, do not have the same struggles to break into Tite's strongest eleven, as they have racked up 97 caps between them, it remains baffling to many as to why they are infrequently deployed despite their fantastic club-record together.
Firmino, signed by former manager Brendan Rodgers, has very much been Klopp's go-to man for the previous six years.
His self-sacrificing approach has seen him become the heartbeat of Klopp's gegenpressing system that has seen Liverpool become domestic, European and International champions.
Alisson, who is largely perceived as Brazil's number one was seen as another landmark signing when he arrived on Merseyside following Loris Karius' disastrous display in the 2018 Champions League final.
However, Tite's failure to recognise the successful spine that Klopp has built with his three Brazilian international's has been rectified in the final group stage match of Brazil's Copa America encounter.
Although Brazil failed to win in their first match with the Liverpool stars all positioned correctly, Fabinho will be hoping this is the start of durable stay in Tite's plans as they gear up for their quarter-final tie on Saturday evening.
