Liverpool will look to pick up their first win of the season when they host Bournemouth on Saturday - but will once again be without a host of first-team options.
The Reds’ slow start to the new campaign continued at Old Trafford on Monday, with goals from Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford helping Manchester United to a 2-1 win. Glaringly obvious was Jurgen Klopp’s lack of options to bring off the bench, with Fabinho the only regular option and 19-year-old Fabio Carvalho the only realistic attacking option.
While those in the pitch were far from their best, the sheer number of injured first-team players only made matters worse, and while Roberto Firmino’s return gave Klopp an option upfront, huge gaps elsewhere didn’t go unnoticed.
READ MORE: Naby Keita injury update as Jurgen Klopp confirms Liverpool injury situation for Bournemouth
And ahead of Saturday’s clash with Bournemouth, here’s the lowdown on those sidelined and when they could return.
Naby Keita
The 27-year-old was expected to be available at Old Trafford to ease some of Liverpool’s midfield woes, but in a fashion that already seems typical of the season he fell victim to a ‘crazy’ injury the day before.
The midfielder featured in the Community Shield win but is yet to feature in the league, either through illness or injury, which is huge cause for concern around Merseyside. And Reds boss Klopp confirmed earlier today that Keita will be unavailable again this weekend.
He said: “Naby will not be ready for the weekend, it's a muscle [issue] and it's not 100% clear. We will see.”
Joel Matip
Joel Matip’s absence has been felt possible as much as anyone else around Merseyside, with the Reds centre-back’s injury coinciding with the recent problems at the back. The 31-year-old complained of a groin issue prior to the draw against Crystal Palace and will again be unavailable for Saturday’s clash at Anfield.
Speaking last week, Klopp said: "How it happened, didn’t feel anything in training, walked in then said ‘yeah, there is something’ and then out for, I don’t know, three weeks, four weeks, whatever.”
But the Reds boss added earlier today that Matip could be back ‘this weekend probably not but after that’ - hinting at a return either for the midweek clash against Newcastle or next weekend’s Merseyside Derby.
Curtis Jones
That promising line of a potential return next week was also attributed to Curtis Jones, with the midfielder also likely to be back by the end of this month or very early September. He, like Keita, featured briefly in the Community Shield before picking up a calf injury and missing the first three games of the league campaign.
The 21-year-old’s injury has been described by Klopp as a ‘stress reaction’, and pictures of the Reds man in a protective boot understandably sparked concern. But the German manager added that they caught the injury at the right time and are managing it carefully.
Thiago Alcantara
Spanish playmaker Thiago remains sidelined for the foreseeable future after picking up a hamstring injury in the opening day draw at Fulham. The 31-year-old limped off in the second half and a scan the following day gace a prognosis of four to six weeks.
It was Thiago’s injury that upped the pressure on Liverpool to invest in the midfield, and his absence in the middle of the park has been felt massively. He is expected to remain sidelined for at least another few weeks.
Speaking in the press conference today, Klopp gave a very brief update on the midfielder, stating that he ‘is not too far away.’
Diogo Jota
Portuguese forward Diogo Jota will be unavailable for Saturday’s clash and likely the rest of August after picking up a thigh injury during pre-season. He missed the curtain raiser against Manchester City and is yet to feature in the league or cup this season.
With such a lengthy spell sidelined, the 25-year-old is likely to be some way off first-team action as he will take some time to regain full match fitness, but again Klopp was blunt but optimistic about his progres, saying that Jota ‘is getting closer.’
Caoimhin Kelleher
Liverpool goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher remains unavailable for Saturday after he picked ip a groin injury while on international duty with the Republic of Ireland in June. Klopp provided a prognosis of ‘2-3 weeks’ at the end of July but that has seemingly been extended, with the Reds boss saying earlier today that ‘Caoimhin will be training early next week as well.’
Anyone else?
French centre-back Ibrahima Konate remains sidelined for the foreseeable after picking up a knee injury against Strasbourg in pre-season, while Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is also a long-term absentee with a ‘serious’ hamstring problem.
Summer arrival Calvin Ramsay has been addressing an old injury problem since arriving from Aberdeen and the 19-year-old posted a quick injury update on social media with him and Oxlade-Chamberlain in the gym.
Another summer signing, Darwin Nunez, will again be suspended following his red card for headbutting Crystal Palace’s Joachim Andersen - his return will come just in time for the Merseyside Derby.
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