Liverpool’s list of injuries is growing at the worst possible time, but Jurgen Klopp will be hopeful of a boost on Christmas morning.
If Liverpool’s physios are working for double pay over the Christmas period, the club will be hit with quite the bill to pay out in the New Year.
At the moment, it would be quite an achievement for Jurgen Klopp to simply get through 90 minutes without seeing another one of his players succumb to an injury of some sort.
Since the international break ended in late November, Klopp has seen the likes of Alisson Becker, Joel Matip, Diogo Jota, Alexis Mac Allister, and Ryan Gravenberch pull up with various problems during matches, and Kostas Tsimikas and Luis Diaz were the latest two to join that dubious list after their respective problems in Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Arsenal.
While Diaz’s issue is hoped to not be a serious one, Tsimikas was sent tumbling into Klopp on the sidelines after a tussle with Bukayo Saka and has subsequently suffered a broken collarbone. It’s cruel luck on the Greek defender, who was performing admirably in the absence of Andy Robertson, another Liverpool left-back dealing with a shoulder problem currently.
Those entering the debate from a tribalistic point of view will often push back on Klopp’s bemoaning of the scheduling, but the outcome of too many games crammed into a short space of time is being seen and felt right now at Anfield and elsewhere.
Injuries have always been a part of football, but the unrelenting run of fixtures for all top-flight clubs is doing little to keep the sport’s leading lights fresh enough to deliver the sorts of moments that make people fans to begin with.
Just ask Eddie Howe at Newcastle. The Magpies’ punishing list of absentees has been a key factor behind a poor run of form that has seen them lose six of the last 13 since the start of November in all competitions, including their seventh Premier League match of the season at Luton Town on Saturday afternoon.
At Manchester United, Erik ten Hag’s disastrous campaign has been impacted by injuries and illnesses to the likes of Lisandro Martinez, Casemiro, Mason Mount, Victor Lindelof, Tyrell Malacia, Harry Maguire, Raphael Varane, and Anthony Martial. Tottenham Hotspur could be without as many as seven of their players against Brighton on December 28, while Chelsea have a number of key men on the sidelines too, including the influential full-back duo of club captain Reece James and Ben Chilwell.
Matip’s season-ending ACL rupture is the worst of Liverpool’s litany, and the problem is so severe, in fact, that the debate around it being a potential Anfield career-ender has sadly surfaced since the center-back was forced off against Fulham earlier this month. At 32 and heading into the final six months of his contract, that discussion is a fair one, even if it might seem harsh for a long-serving defender who has done so much for the cause since his 2016 arrival.
Robertson has been absent since a shoulder injury in October when on international duty for Scotland, while Thiago Alcantara’s most recent start for the Reds came nearly 11 months ago at Wolves. The former Barcelona and Bayern Munich man had his end-of-season surgery on a hip problem expedited in an effort to be fit in time for the current campaign, but over seven months on, and Thiago has yet to kick a ball this season. He is another player heading into the final months of his deal with the Reds, and his four years on Merseyside appear to be winding down in the meekest of fashion.
Even Conor Bradley’s three-month setback with a back complaint has denied the Northern Ireland international the chance to catch the eye in the cup competitions so far, while Ben Doak’s injury, sustained for the under-21s last week, means he is unable to gain some additional senior minutes at a vital juncture of the year.
Mac Allister’s injury, picked up in the win at Sheffield United this month, sounds like a particularly troublesome one, with assistant manager Pep Lijnders suggesting this week that a January comeback is hoped for the Argentina World Cup winner, while what was expected to be Stefan Bajcetic’s breakout campaign is yet to get on track after just one appearance all season, at LASK in the Europa League back in September.
Jota’s absence has perhaps been keenly felt the most, however. The Portugal international would have been a perfect solution off the bench in the draws with Manchester United and Arsenal, and while the ex-Wolves frontman is sometimes accused of limited output outside of the penalty area, there is no denying his predatory instincts have been sorely missed of late. His return cannot come soon enough for a frontline that is increasingly reliant on the goals of Mohamed Salah right now.
“I don’t want to rule anybody out now; we’ll see,” Klopp said when asked if Jota was in contention for a return at Burnley on Boxing Day. “We only have one more proper session now, so we will see, but it would be a surprise. I don’t know. Diogo hasn’t trained with the team, but the session I saw was really intense. I didn’t ask the medical department yet.”
Klopp might want to make an immediate beeline for the medical department when he touches base on Christmas morning at the AXA Training Center. Given the injury problems, they will no doubt be working overtime. It could be quite the festive bonus for them, in fact.
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