Jurgen Klopp has shared an update on the knock that Alexis Mac Allister incurred during Liverpool’s 4-1 win over Chelsea on Wednesday night.
The 25-year-old fell to the Anfield turf with a knee injury in the closing minutes and, with the Reds having made all five substitutions, continued on until full-time.
Fans may have feared that playing through the pain barrier could aggravate the issue, but the manager delivered some good news on the Argentine in the post-match press conference.
Klopp said (via liverpoolfc.com): “The next game is coming in four days and I have no idea who can play again because they looked quite knackered when I had a look in the dressing room! Little back here, Macca on the knee – knee on knee – stuff like this. Nothing major, at least nobody told me that yet, so it’s all fine.
“We need them all – and it’s not a phrase, it’s exactly how it is. I’m happy for them they all could perform the way they performed. The next massive game is coming up already, at Arsenal, and let’s recover and go again.”
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Mac Allister missed six matches with a knee injury in December and also sat out last weekend’s FA Cup win over Norwich after incurring a slight knock against Fulham in Liverpool’s previous game (Transfermarkt), so it could’ve been quite worrying to see him needing treatment again last night.
Thankfully, Klopp seems to have indicated that the 25-year-old should be fine to face Arsenal on Sunday, having missed the reverse Premier League fixture just before Christmas.
It’s only now that the Reds have been getting players back from their respective injuries, so it’d be quite galling to start losing a few yet again, and we still need all the midfield depth that we can get due to Wataru Endo’s ongoing participation in the Asian Cup, with Japan into the quarter-finals of that competition.
At least the trip to the Emirates Stadium being fixed for Sunday evening gives that extra bit of time for Mac Allister – and indeed everyone in the Liverpool squad – to recover and prepare for a potentially pivotal top-of-the-table clash.