Liverpool beat Qarabag 6-0 in the Champions League on Wednesday, but Jeremy Frimpong’s injury spoiled the game and worsened their defensive crisis.
Jeremy Frimpong was injured on Wednesday (Image: Ed Sykes/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images)
Manager Arne Slott confirmed Jeremy Frimpong will be out for “a few weeks”, but the Liverpool star’s injury was not as serious as initially feared. Frimpong, 25, was sent off in the first half of Wednesday’s 6-0 Champions League win over Qarabag.
Liverpool had already lightened up their defense, with Ryan Gravenbirch playing as a temporary centre-back. However, there is some good news ahead of Saturday’s home game against Newcastle.
Asked for an update on Frimpong, Slott told his pre-match press conference: “He definitely won’t be in the squad tomorrow. He’ll be out for a few weeks, but it’s not as bad as we expected. So it’s been a positive out of something that wasn’t very positive.”
In more positive news, both Ibrahima Konate and Curtis Jones will feature. Defender Konate has missed Liverpool’s last three games following the death of his father.
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“Ibou trained with us yesterday, trained with us today and will join the team tomorrow,” Slott revealed. “Curtis is available again. Like I said, he was sick, but he is available.
“Joe (Gomez) will be out, but it doesn’t have to be much longer. But he will be out for the weekend.”
Regarding Alexander Isak’s recovery from a broken leg, Slott added: “He hasn’t even been on the pitch yet. He’s just started using a walker. That shows he’s not on the pitch yet and doesn’t expect to be on the pitch today or tomorrow. As for his recovery work, as we knew, it’s going to take some time.”
The Reds manager also revealed that Jaden Dunnes suffered a setback. “He definitely would have been on the team, but unfortunately he’s not. We don’t expect him to be back today or tomorrow,” Slott explained.
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Ibrahima Konate set to return against Newcastle (Image: Marc Atkins/Getty Images)
“He has been very unlucky in his career so far. The good thing about him is that he has a great mentality and is always fighting against himself even after setbacks. Unfortunately, he has been through a lot because it would have been a great moment for him if Alexander Isak was out.”
“He would have helped us in certain situations, but unfortunately for him and for us, he has faced a lot of injuries in his career so far. The good thing about him is that he will fight back and come back. And the moment he gets fit again, the world will know about him.”
Commenting on Stefan Vajcetic’s absence, Slott admitted: “He hasn’t trained yet. So he’s always coming closer to the team and then going back a little bit, then coming closer and then going back a little bit. So we hope and expect that we can get him back soon.”
“But at that moment he will be training with us again and then he has been out for six, seven, eight months without training with the first team. So as much as I would like to have him back, we also have to manage our expectations for him.”
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