Ryan Gravenberch is set to miss out on a crucial week for Liverpool as he continues his recovery from ankle ligament damage.
The Dutchman has been out of action since being forced off in the early stages of the Reds’ Carabao Cup final victory over Chelsea on February 25.
And This Is Anfield understands that he will also be unavailable to feature in this week’s vital clashes with Sparta Prague and Man City in the Europa League and Premier League respectively.
Offering an initial update on Gravenberch’s injury last week, Jurgen Klopp moved only to rule the midfielder out of then-upcoming meetings with Southampton and Nottingham Forest.
He said: “It’s a ligament injury, it could have been much worse, but it’s bad enough for him to be ruled out for this game, next game, then we will see.”
However, it is now understood that a return after the March international break is currently considered the likeliest timeline.
That would mean Gravenberch not only misses this week’s games but also the second leg against Sparta Prague as well as an FA Cup trip to Man United.
Still, the club’s medical staff consider him fortunate not to have sustained a break as a result of a heavy challenge from Moises Caicedo at Wembley.
Gravenberch is one of a number of injured players who Liverpool consider to be close to returning.
There is hope that Mohamed Salah will return to training this week, perhaps even putting himself in contention to start against City on Sunday.
Curtis Jones, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Alisson are also expected to return either side of the international break to provide a major boost to Klopp’s options.
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