Arne Slot has revealed the latest injury news ahead of Liverpool’s Premier League clash against Nottingham Forest on Sunday.
The league champions travel to the City Ground to face Forest, who are now under their fourth permanent manager of the season, hoping for a positive result to strengthen their push for a top-four finish.
However, they will be without several key players for the clash. Jeremie Frimpong, Alexander Isak and Wataru Endo remain unavailable for selection, while Conor Bradley and Giovanni Leoni are long-term absentees.
Frimpong’s first season at Liverpool has been disrupted by fitness issues, and he has been out of action since picking up a thigh injury in their 6-0 thrashing of Qarabag in the Champions League last month.
Endo, meanwhile, faces an extended spell on the sidelines after suffering a serious foot injury during the recent 1-0 win over Sunderland, while British record signing Isak is edging closer to a comeback after several months of absence.
The Sweden striker suffered a fibula and ankle fracture following a heavy challenge from Tottenham’s Micky van de Ven during a league match in December and is targeting a return in late March or April.
“Jeremie will not be involved this weekend yet. We hope he will be involved next week [against West Ham United] if things go as planned”, Slot said in his pre-match press conference in quotes revealed by the official Liverpool website.
“Wata will be out for a long time, as I said earlier. We don’t know exactly how long – but long.
“Alex has been on the [training] pitch with his running shoes for the first time this week, so it will still be a while…It will be somewhere around the international break. That depends on whether he has a setback. It’ll be the end of March, start of April when he’s back with the group, but it doesn’t mean he’s ready to start playing straight away”, Slot added.
There is some encouraging news, as Gomez has been passed fit to start in a timely boost, given the lack of natural options at right-back. The defender recently returned from a knee injury and has featured off the bench in the Reds’ last two matches.
“Yeah, I think he is.”
Liverpool suffered a disappointing 3-0 defeat in the reverse fixture, but a victory this time around would boost their chances of finishing in a Champions League spot.
