Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has admitted that Alisson could return from injury sooner than was previously expected, though a problem sustained by Diogo Jota is slightly more severe.
Both players picked up injuries in Saturday’s 1-1 draw away at Manchester City. Goalkeeper Alisson battled on through second-half stoppage time after straining his hamstring trying to clear the ball, while forward Jota was hauled off earlier with a similar muscle tweak.
Klopp was asked for an update ahead of Thursday’s Europa League clash with LASK at Anfield.
“Both are out. With Ali, it’s a bit lesser, so we have to see – not day by day, he will not play tomorrow, not on Sunday, probably not the week after. Then it should be kind of okay,” he said. “Diogo will take a little bit longer, we don’t know exactly how long, but it’s a bit more severe. We have to see.”
Jota will be on the sidelines for a while / Michael Regan/GettyImages
Reports suggest that Liverpool will target their 17 December fixture against Manchester United as a potential return date for Alisson, though Jota is unlikely to play again until 2024.
When asked whether Alisson’s injury was as bad as first feared, Klopp replied: “No, but bad enough.”
In Alisson’s absence, Republic of Ireland international Caoimhin Kelleher is set for an extended run of games in the starting lineup, vindicating Liverpool’s decision not to sell him this past summer.
“That’s why we knew we wanted to have Caoimhin here, for these moments,” Klopp continued.
“Nobody, Caoimh included, wanted Ali to get injured, but if these kinds of things happen then you need the strongest possible option. That’s Caoimh for us.
“That’s the only positive about it, that we can put in Caoimh. That’s fine. He gets the opportunity, which he deserves anyway.
“He would have played tomorrow night anyway, that’s clear, but now he will have a few more games, and hopefully he can show his full potential.”
