Jurgen Klopp has revealed striker Divock Origi may not feature in Liverpool’s clash with Swansea City due to a minor foot injury.
The Belgian scored in last week’s 3-0 victory away to Derby County in the League Cup third round, but dropped back down to the substitutes’ bench for last weekend’s win over Hull City.
Having played just 270 minutes of football this season over six games, Origi is on the periphery of Klopp’s squad at present.
This is set to continue as the Reds travel to the Liberty Stadium for Saturday’s latest Premier League outing, as the manager told reporters at Melwood on Thursday afternoon.
“Maybe Divock Origi,” he said, when asked about potential absentees for the trip to south Wales.
“He had a little knock on his foot. Nothing major. We have to see.”
The rest of the squad have travelled as normal this week, explained Klopp.
Origi was unlikely to have started on Saturday, given the form of Roberto Firmino and the availability of Daniel Sturridge, who came on as a substitute in the 5-1 victory over Hull.
But this serves as another setback in what has proved to be a disappointing start to the season for the 21-year-old.
Arriving late to pre-season following his involvement at Euro 2016 with Belgium, Origi found himself behind on fitness when compared to his attacking colleagues.
This was compounded by a series of issues in the opening weeks of the season, restricting him to just four substitute appearances in the league so far.
Origi is a player with immense potential, however, and should still play a key role for the Reds in the long term.
Klopp’s attacking options are rife at this early stage in 2016/17, with Firmino, Sturridge, Philippe Coutinho and Sadio Mane all in strong form, while the likes of Adam Lallana, Georginio Wijnaldum and Jordan Henderson are establishing themselves as crucial outlets in midfield.
The only other players likely to miss out on Saturday are Sheyi Ojo, Mamadou Sakho and Joe Gomez, with Dejan Lovren passed fit to return having missed the last clash through illness.
Fan Comments