Fabinho missed Liverpool 's clash with Leicester City on Friday due to personal reasons.
The Brazilian midfielder, 29, was notably missing from the Reds' matchday squad as they arrived at Anfield ahead of their final match of 2022. But Fabinho won't be back in Premier League action until the new year, serving a blow for manager Jurgen Klopp.
Although the actual reason behind his absence hasn't been confirmed, it may well be due to the fact Fabinho's wife, Rebeca Tavares, is imminently expecting the couple's first child, a baby boy. In a boost for Klopp, French defender Ibrahima Konate was back on the bench following his exploits with France at the World Cup.
Fabinho wants his son to adopt Liverpool as his favourite team and hopes that he'll be a more attacking footballer. "I hope [he] will be a little bit more offensive and score more goals than me [and] he will be a better player than I am as well," the Brazil international told club media in July, days after he and Tavares made the announcement.
"I am really happy. Maybe he will not like football but of course I think if he goes to Anfield and watches the games, it's impossible not to like football. Of course he will be a Liverpool fan, a little Scouser and hopefully a better player than his father! For me and my wife, we are really excited. It’s the best news of our life. We are really happy with this news."
Fabinho played the full 90 minutes on Boxing Day as the Reds defeated Aston Villa 3-1 away from home. The 29-year-old has endured a difficult campaign both collectively and as an individual, with question marks over his ability to keep performing at the top level after four years on Merseyside.
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Earlier this season, Klopp was asked about Fabinho's 'dip' in form and the Liverpool boss made it clear that he was confident in the former Monaco ace's quality. "In a long career, players have dips in performance, that's completely normal," Klopp explained.
"Usually you sort that by not playing that often, stuff like this, but because of our situation, Fab had to play through everything. You get through it, and at one point you are back to yourself, that's how it is. If we have other options, which we use more often than in other seasons, then we use that to give him the chance to recover completely from the last game or whatever."
A strong performance in Liverpool's Champions League win at home to Napoli in November saw Fabinho receive plaudits, which Klopp labelled "a good step in the right direction." "The game was a clear sign of Fabinho how we know him," the German added. "It felt good, very important for him to realise that that’s possible as well, and [it was] a good step in the right direction."
