Jurgen Klopp has confirmed Sadio Mane suffered a hamstring injury in the first half of Liverpool’s 2-1 win at Wolves, saying “we have to wait.”
Mane started in an unchanged side at Molineux, but lasted just 33 minutes as he pulled up off the ball and immediately called for a replacement.
The No. 10 drew bemused responses from his team-mates as he walked to the touchline as play went on, allowing Takumi Minamino to make his Premier League debut.
It was speculated at half-time Mane had told club doctor Andrew Massey that it was a hamstring problem, and speaking after the game, Klopp confirmed he had suffered a “muscle tweak.”
Speaking to reporters in his post-match press conference, the manager said “we have to wait” to determine the extent of his layoff.
“We don’t know exactly, it’s the muscle. He felt something in the hamstring,” he said.
“We don’t know yet, obviously, we have to wait. We will see.”
The hope will be that it is only a minor injury, particularly as the Senegalese was able to walk off the pitch unaided, but it certainly isn’t ideal.
Mane was likely to sit out of Sunday’s clash with Shrewsbury regardless, with heavy rotation expected, but it could be that Minamino is now rested too.
“Taki came on [and] felt his calves immediately,” Klopp told BT Sport, “at half-time he was on the [massage table]!”
Xherdan Shaqiri is currently sidelined with a calf injury and Adam Lallana missed the win over Wolves with a virus, while both Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino should be rested in the FA Cup.
This should see Divock Origi receive increased game time, while both Curtis Jones and Harvey Elliott could come into contention at Shrewsbury too.
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