Balotelli out for Potters match…
Brendan Rodgers has confirmed that Italian forward Mario Balotelli will not be available for the clash with Stoke City, via the official website.
The 24-year-old striker, with two goals in all competitions to his name so far this term, picked up a hamstring injury on international duty, and has not yet fully recovered.
“Not yet, no,” said Rodgers when asked if Balotelli will play against Mark Hughes’ Stoke outfit.
“We’ll have the same squad as the other night.”
This means Mamadou Sakho won’t be in the squad either.
With Balotelli out, Rodgers is certain to deploy Rickie Lambert up top, with the ageing Englishman having bagged twice in his past two matches.
Lambert notched the opener versus Crystal Palace only for the Reds to go on and lose 3-1, and bagged a crucial equaliser versus Ludogorets in the Champions League midweek.
As a result, he’s now earned a run of games in the side, and fans will hope he continues finding the back of the net – with winnable games against Stoke, Leicester and Sunderland coming up.