Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp is expecting three of The Reds’ senior players to return to full training this week ahead of Sunday’s clash with Manchester United at Anfield.
The three players Klopp was speaking about are Fabinho, Joel Matip and Dejan Lovren.
Fabinho has been out since picking up an injury in the 1-1 Champions League draw with Napoli back in November. Matip hasn’t featured since the draw with Manchester United at Old Trafford in October. Lovren is returning from an injury he suffered in Austria during Liverpool’s 2-0 win over RB Salzburg in December. While it’s unlikely any of the three will start on Sunday, any or all of them could make the matchday squad.
This is a great boost for Klopp as The Reds enter the second half of the season with a substantial Premier League lead to protect while also defending their European crown.
Speaking to Liverpoolfc.com, Klopp said:
“It looks like Joel will be in, it looks like Fabinho will be in maybe a day later, I’m not sure. Dejan, maybe he can be in as well.
“That means a lot and helps massively of course. But we will see how it looks. The week is very important.
“The game on Sunday against United, we all know what people expect from us from that game. It will be a big one as well and we try to be ready for that.”
Looking back on Liverpool’s 1-0 win at Spurs on Saturday, Klopp commented on how happy he was with the win but also acknowledged some of the more lacklustre aspects of The Reds’ performance:
“I couldn’t be more happy about the result of course and about parts of the performance. But I said to the boys already, we will never start lying to ourselves.
“There are parts where we can do better, you see that.
“That’s what we have to make sure – that we learn that immediately again and we will.
“This time it was not intensity, this time it was the rhythm break. I know people will say sometimes it’s that and sometimes it’s that, but it is like this.
“We were now used to [a game] three days, three days, four days, three days and now some of us had nine days. Training, yes, but not the intensity – we cannot do that and don’t want to do that.
“So now we are in again and let’s carry on.”
Liverpool play Manchester United at Anfield this Sunday, January 19th, at 16:30.
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