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Jurgen Klopp has had more bad news for Liverpool fans after Saturday’s spectacular 1-1 draw against Brighton, as injury concerns for the defending champions escalated.
The boss has confirmed that James Milner suffered a hamstring injury during the midday clash on the South Coast, telling talkSPORT the midfielder was ‘absolutely not cool’.
And he also confirmed that fans will have to wait longer than expected to see Thiago Alcantara in action again, admitting that the summer signing is not even close to a comeback.
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Thiago has been sidelined since the Merseyside derby last month
Thiago has only made two appearances since his announced arrival at Anfield this summer.
Seven weeks have passed since his last game in a Reds shirt, with the Spaniard initially expected to be out for a short time with just a slight blow.
But it looks like it was more complicated than expected, with Klopp claiming the former Bayern Munich player would miss Liverpool’s upcoming Champions League fixtures against Ajax on Tuesday as well as their Premier League clash against the Wolves next Sunday.
The boss went on to reveal that midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain would miss those matches as well, as he rubbed salt in injuries by confirming Milner became the latest player to join the Reds’ growing injury list.
BT Sport
Klopp was clearly frustrated after Saturday’s draw with Brighton
After being detained by Brighton, Klopp was asked about the chances of seeing Thiago or Oxlade-Chamberlain in the coming week, and practically confirmed their absence.
“I don’t want to say too much to Ajax and Wolves, but I don’t think so,” he said in his post-match press conference.
Klopp at least put aside injury fears over Neco Williams – the club’s only option left at right-back – after being sacked at half-time in Saturday’s game, but had more bad news about Milner.
Speaking to talkSPORT, the Liverpool coach said: “I have no idea how bad Milner’s injury is, we’ll see with that.
BT Sport
Milner was the last player to suffer injury for Liverpool
“With Nico, it’s just the situation. We had the opportunity to bring Hendo [captain Jordan Henderson], and we had the choice between [keeping Milner on the pitch] Neco, who played 90 minutes a few days ago, or Milly who also played, and I decided for Milly. That’s all.
“Milly is absolutely not cool, the result was not cool, but the rest was good, I’m really proud of the performance of the boys.”
