Liverpool striker Hugo Ekitike will be sidelined for almost nine months after sustaining a serious injury in Tuesday’s game against PSG. The forward went down without any resistance in the first half and appeared to be in agony as he rolled around on the grass. After being treated by Liverpool doctors, he was carried off on a stretcher and immediately left Anfield.
This is a devastating blow for Ekitike, who will miss the World Cup and a significant part of the 2026/27 season. This means Liverpool’s owners FSG will likely be forced to take urgent action to sign a new striker in the summer transfer window.
Slott made it clear in his post-match comments that the Frenchman was not feeling well, saying: “It was obvious to everyone that he wasn’t feeling well, that he wasn’t feeling well. It was obvious to everyone that he wasn’t feeling well. In the second half, he went home and I didn’t see him.”
“It also seems like we’ve lost players a lot this season, so it’s very difficult for him because the last thing you want to do is get injured at this stage of the season.”
Ekitike’s injury occurred on the same night as Alexander Isak was given his first start since breaking his leg in December. He had just five touches in the first 45 minutes and was substituted during the break.
Slott explained that this was a pre-planned change, saying: “We said before the game that if we go into overtime and he plays the second half and plays 45 minutes, there will only be two minutes before the 30-minute overtime starts.
“I don’t think that was realistic. To have him play 45 minutes and see how he feels to add five or 10 minutes to that at halftime was a possibility today.”
“But we already had to make the first substitution in the first half, so I didn’t want to make the second substitution five minutes after half-time. That’s why I took him off at half-time.”
“He came close to goal twice and that’s why he can play with strikers of his level. There was one header from a set-piece and one great run behind[Willian]Pacho where he was very close to goal but ended up being offside.
“It’s good to have him back. He was ready, but if I didn’t think he was ready, I wouldn’t have played him.
“If you compare us today to last week, I think it’s fair to say he was completely ready to play. Otherwise you wouldn’t have played the first half as well as we did, but the second half was even better.”
Considering Ekitike will be sidelined for the foreseeable future, Isak will have to shoulder the burden of Liverpool’s attack for the rest of the season.
He is almost certain to start in this weekend’s Merseyside derby, but Kodi Gakpo could deputize at striker if required.
