Liverpool were hit by another injury as Jeremy Frimpong was forced off the pitch with a hamstring problem during the Reds’ Champions League match against Eintracht Frankfurt. The Dutch international was substituted just 19 minutes into the game at Deutsche Bank Park.
The 24-year-old suffered a muscle problem when sprinting down the right flank in the 16th minute. Despite his initial attempts to continue playing, Frimpong visibly limped on the pitch and after a few minutes ended up sitting down on the grass and walking away. He was replaced by summer signing Connor Bradley.
Frimpong had just made his third start in the Premier League or Champions League this season after sustaining a hamstring injury in the Merseyside side’s league opener against Bournemouth.
The Reds were already without Ryan Grabenbirch in Germany on Wednesday night due to an ankle problem. However, Frimpong’s international team-mate could be fit to face Brentford away in the Premier League on Saturday. Frimpong, by contrast, appears to be forced to the sidelines for weeks.
Manager Arne Slott named a bold starting XI for Frankfurt without talismanic attacker Mohamed Salah, but summer signing Milos Kerkes was left on the bench. The Dutch coach explained before the match: “The first answer is always yes (it was a difficult decision).
“But it’s also about Mo and all the players we have. It’s always difficult when you pick a team because we have a lot of good players. That’s also why I use these players.”
“The way we ended the game against United was good, mainly in the second half. We created a lot of chances. And Ryan’s absence means we have to rebuild our midfield a little bit, defensively and offensively.”
“We decided to start like this based on Frankfurt’s usual play. But as always, there are players who start the game and there are players who influence the game from the bench, and it was the same today.”
Liverpool entered half-time with a 3-1 lead. Rasmus Christensen scored again with a low drive, and after his former club opponent Hugo Ekitike hit three goals in nine minutes, Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate gave the visitors a welcome lead going into half-time.
