The combativeness and discipline Liverpool displayed in their 1-0 League Cup victory over Stoke City made Jurgen Klopp proud, but the manager was also pained by a double injury blow.
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Jurgen Klopp confirmed to reporters today that Lovren will miss a couple of weeks and Coutinho the rest of the month with hamstring injuries picked up in Tuesday’s League Cup win over Stoke City.
It means he now has 10 players on the sidelines – at least with five hamstring strains – and his only fit centre-back Kolo Toure suffered badly with cramp late on at the Britannia Stadium.
“With Dejan the situation is I think he will be available after Manchester United and Phil needs maybe one, two weeks longer, so three weeks for Phil”. At the start of the season, we had five.
Klopp admitted he feared the worst over Coutinho and Lovren, saying: “We had for sure two bad – I think, bad – injuries and that’s why we’re not only lucky tonight”.
“We have no break, no recovery, Players who never had a problem had no problems in pre-season are fine, for all other players it is up and down”. There is no training. There’s no training. But no problem, really.
“If they make big steps then pick them so you always have them around you”.
It remains to be seen how long they will be out for, but both players look set to be added to a long casualty list that includes captain Jordan Henderson, strikers Daniel Sturridge and Divock Origi, and centre-back Martin Skrtel.
“Now we take them back and it is a big chance for the boys but there is no pressure because they are so young”.
“We showed what we were capable of, although we have shown what we were capable of in other games, but we have to show more consistency”.
Liverpool’s Philippe Coutinho (L) sits on the field injured before being substituted during the … “When that happens lads look to impress more and give more”, said the England worldwide. We played well and won the game. “I put down the various hamstring injuries down to Klopp’s change in style”. We have the capability to get back into it.
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Connor Randall, Brad Smith and Cameron Brannagan are among the young players expected to travel to Exeter, with Klopp admitting before training on Thursday that he does not know the options he has available.
