Liverpool’s attacking options have been dealt another blow with Roberto Firmino ruled out of the trip to Man City with a calf injury.
Jurgen Klopp‘s side resume their season against Pep Guardiola’s men on Thursday night after more than five weeks without competitive action.
With only seven Reds involved during the World Cup, Klopp was able to work with the majority of his squad in recent weeks, including Firmino after being overlooked for Brazil in Qatar.
The No. 9 racked up more than 100 minutes during the two friendlies in Dubai and was in line to start at the Etihad, but a calf injury now means he is unavailable.
The Athletic’s James Pearce reports that Firmino “got a kick during training earlier in the week” and a resulting scan “confirmed that the problem is only minor.”
We’ll likely hear more on the issue from Klopp later on Thursday.
Liverpool are right not to take any risks but with the trip to Aston Villa only four days away, he’ll also be a doubt for that fixture.
Klopp is already without Luis Diaz (knee) and Diogo Jota (calf) to long-term issues, leaving Mohamed Salah and Darwin Nunez as his specialist senior figures in attack.
At City, Ben Doak could be in contention to feature, while Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Fabio Carvalho have also been utilised up front – but Klopp could also look to go back to a 4-4-2 system.
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