Jurgen Klopp confirms Liverpool will be without midfielder vs. Huddersfield

Posted by

Jurgen Klopp has officially ruled Naby Keita out of Saturday’s clash with Huddersfield Town following his injury setback during the international break.

The summer signing suffered a hamstring problem during Guinea’s 1-1 draw with Rwanda on Tuesday before returning to Melwood for further assessments.

Reports out of Africa have since suggested Keita will be sidelined for at least two weeks, thereby ruling him out of the trip to the John Smith’s Stadium and the mid-week Champions League clash with Red Star Belgrade.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Klopp told Liverpoolfc.com: “We had yesterday’s session, where a few of the boys trained. We have to see how they reacted after that.”

“The only thing that’s pretty sure is that Naby will not be available. With all of the rest we have to see how it develops. That’s it, pretty much.”

Liverpool’s medical team have had their work cut out this week, with four players having returned from international duty with fitness issues.

Naby Keita – image by Liverpoolfc.com

SEE MORE:
Harry Wilson and his long overdue spell in the spotlight

Mohamed Salah started a worrying trend when he was substituted late on in Egypt’s 4-1 win over Swaziland with a muscle strain last Friday.

After captaining the Netherlands to a 3-0 win over Germany on the Saturday, Virgil van Dijk withdrew from the Dutch squad having aggravated his previous rib injury.

Sadio Mane was also in the wars as he was forced to undergo surgery on a broken thumb sustained whilst away with Senegal.

Whilst Salah and Van Dijk have since reported for full training, there has been no sign of Mane at Melwood. This could now pave the way for Xherdan Shaqiri to earn just his second start in the league since his summer arrival from Stoke City.

There may also be another opportunity for striker Daniel Sturridge on the back of his Player of the Month award for the Reds.

James Milner has meanwhile produced an admirable recovery to seemingly declare himself fit just two weeks after suffering a hamstring injury against Manchester City.

Klopp will be hoping the availability of Adam Lallana can help compensate for the loss of the attacking impetus Keita had been tipped to inject into Liverpool’s midfield.

 

More Stories Huddersfield Liverpool Naby Keita