Virgil van Dijk has told the BBC that he is still adjusting to Liverpool's playing style and that he felt the need to "step up" his game immediately following his world-record move.
Van Dijk has made seven appearances for Liverpool since his £75 million transfer from Southampton at the start of January.
Fellow Liverpool centre-half Dejan Lovren recently admitted he was surprised by how just quickly he and Van Dijk had formed a working partnership.
"I am getting used to how we play," Van Dijk said. "The intensity of our game is a lot higher than what I was used to.
"Every day here is tough. We work very hard, run a lot and there is a big difference. I needed to step up my game, especially in the beginning."
Liverpool wanted to sign Van Dijk last summer but were forced to publicly apologise to Southampton amid allegations of an illegal approach.
The Netherlands international handed in a transfer request in an attempt to force a move away from St Mary's, only to stay on the south coast until Liverpool and Southampton reached an agreement in December.
"People don't know what really happened," the 26-year-old added. "I kept my head down and kept playing. I was out for eight months and was just happy to play again.
"I just switched on again after the transfer window in the summer. I didn't think about anything until I got a phone call from the Southampton board."
Meanwhile, Trent Alexander-Arnold has welcomed the increased competition at right-back resulting from Nathaniel Clyne's return from long-term injury.
Clyne, who is now back in full training, has not appeared this season because of a back injury, with Alexander-Arnold and Joe Gomez deputising for the England full-back.
"I think that competition for places has to be a big part of Liverpool Football Club," Alexander-Arnold told the club's website. "To have a real squad depth and to know that you need to fight for your position is healthy. If you have 11 positions and 11 players who know they are going to play week in, week out, then they could think: 'Well, look, I don't really need to try that hard in training anymore.
"Whereas if you've got two or three players in each position who want to start and who can compete to start in each game, then every single day in training you've got people fighting for the spot.
"Of course, that's really healthy for the team moving forward because every day we're making each other better and with that the results get better, the performances get better and we improve as a team, so it's a really fresh atmosphere at the minute. Healthy competition is always good."