Liverpool Team News: Klopp Confirms Fresh Injury Blow + Offers Milner Update

Liverpool will look to continue their push for the top four when they take on Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on Wednesday night.

Ahead of the game, Jurgen Klopp has been speaking at his pre-match press conference this afternoon and he’s given Liverpoolfc.com a team news and injury update.

The German coach confirmed a fresh injury blow with the news that Divock Origi is expected to miss the trip to the North East after suffering a hamstring injury during the win over Leicester on Saturday.

The final results of a scan weren’t known at the time Klopp took his press conference but the Liverpool boss says that it would take a miracle for the Belgian international to be available for the game.

However, there was more positive news on Jordon Ibe as the attacker is expected to recover from a bout of illness and be back in contention to face Sunderland after returning to training yesterday.

Klopp also gave an update on the fitness of James Milner and the midfielder is set to make his comeback from a calf injury next week meaning he could be available for the first leg of Liverpool’s League Cup semi-final with Stoke on January 5th.

Here is what Klopp told the clubs website:

“I cannot say too much about Divock because at this moment I don’t have the results of the scan, so we have to wait a few more minutes because the press conference is a little bit too early for this information.

“If there is no miracle or something like this then he is not available for the next game, so we have to find a solution for this.

“Jordon Ibe has been back in training since yesterday. He was sick and had a few problems for nearly a week. We will have to see. Yesterday was completely normal training, but we’ll have to wait on how he reacts to this.

“I think from the game [against Leicester] we have no other problems. Millie [James Milner] will start pitch sessions, not with the team but outside tomorrow. Then he needs a week and should be available.”

With Origi set to miss out, Christian Benteke should lead the line up front against Sunderland and the Belgian striker will be hoping to build on his winning goal against Leicester last time out.

Liverpool head in to the game on Wednesday sitting eighth in the Premier League table and five points adrift of fourth-placed Tottenham so Klopp will be hoping to give their Champions League hopes a major boost with a win at Sunderland.