Fábio Carvalho has hit back at RB Leipzig after the club’s sporting director suggested he wasn’t up for the challenge in Germany. The Liverpool loanee is now impressing in the Championship with Hull City.

Carvalho will be aiming to help Hull into the playoffs on the final day of Championship action today. The Tigers still have a chance of finishing inside the top six to play for a place back in the Premier League, although they will have to rely on West Brom dropping points.

Regardless of today’s result against Plymouth, it has been a valuable experience for Carvalho. The 21-year-old has rediscovered some of his form after a difficult spell in Leipzig earlier in the season.

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Carvalho played just 360 minutes of action while with the Bundesliga side, and found himself dropping down the pecking order despite Leipzig having wanted to sign him permanently, only for Liverpool to show no interest in letting him go.

“I feel like I’m making up for lost time,” Carvalho told the ECHO about his spell at Hull. “It’s football, you’re not always going to get what you want.

“You’re not always going to be at the bottom, but you’re not always going to be at the top. There are always going to be ups and downs and you just have to fight through, show your perseverance and show your resilience. That’s what I’m trying to do.

“Obviously they (RB Leipzig) were very keen on it. I just wanted to play football. They put in a plan that I liked, before they signed all of the other players.

“That was the reason why I went there, because there was a plan and a purpose to go. Regardless of whether they wanted me on a permanent move or a loan. In the end, a loan was what was agreed. That’s all I have to say on it.

“If I’m being honest with you, I don’t think I got a clear chance or as many chances as other players did. Obviously there was a lot of competition in my position, which I don’t mind.

“I feel that’s the only way we’re going to improve, the same way there’s competition here (at Hull). It brings out the best of the best players.

“But I felt like I wasn’t given the same chances that other players were given. That’s fine, obviously they got their chance first and they took it which is absolutely normal. That’s just football.

“I still learnt a lot from the coaches and the players, playing in the Bundesliga and playing in the Champions League. I’ve learnt a lot from my time there and I’m grateful to them for everything that they did for me. But now I’m here and this is what I’m focussed on.”

Carvalho also responded to Leipzig sporting director Rouven Schröder’s suggestion that he hadn’t been up for the battle in the Bundesliga. Following the player’s departure, Schröder said: "Fabio has a great character. But he realized: ‘Okay, there’s a competitor here, I have to do more!’ And we noticed that he didn’t want to face the competition.”

Carvalho responded: “He can go back and watch training and then there’ll be an answer! I had conversations with the people at Liverpool and we decided that it was best to recall me.

“To be fair it was kind of a no-brainer (to cancel the loan) because I wasn’t playing! It just doesn’t really make sense what their sporting director said because they tried to do everything to keep me, so that doesn’t really make sense.”

Liverpool.com says: It was rather strange from Leipzig that they didn’t give Carvalho more opportunities, considering how hard they pushed for his signing last summer. He’s more than a little entitled to feel a bit aggrieved with Schröder’s comments given the situation.

It will be interesting to see what happens with Carvalho next season under a new manager, likely to be Arne Slot. Will his spell at Hull be enough to earn him a spot in his squad? Or will he head back out on loan, or even move permanently?