Back For Everton? Klopp Offers Positive Injury Update On Key Liverpool Man

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has offered a positive update on Joel Matip after suggesting the defender could be back sooner than expected from a thigh injury.

Matip has been hampered by the problem in recent weeks as he was forced to miss the Southampton game at Anfield last month before returning for Liverpool’s 3-0 win at Stoke last Wednesday.

However, the centre-back aggravated the injury and Klopp revealed the bad news at his pre-match press conference ahead of the Merseysiders impressive 5-1 victory over Brighton on Saturday.

Reports suggested that Matip was facing a month on the sidelines which would have ruled him out until the New Year and seen the cente-back miss up to nine matches during the hectic festive period.

However, Klopp has now offered a positive update on the Cameroon international after suggesting that Matip should be back playing again sooner than expected.

The Liverpool boss has said the 26-year-old isn’t expected to be out for a month but is certain to miss Wednesday night’s Champions League decider against Spartak Moscow.

Klopp is quoted as saying by the Liverpool Echo:

“He has hurt his muscle. I don’t know how long exactly he’ll be out, but he’s definitely not playing Wednesday.

“A month? No, I don’t think so. But as always, it’s possible. We have to wait.

“But it’s possible that it will be shorter. We will see.”

It means there is a slight possibility Matip could be back in time for the Merseyside derby when Liverpool welcome Everton to Anfield next Sunday afternoon.

However, right now there doesn’t seem to be any specific time-frame being put on Matip’s recovery so we’ll just have to wait and see how the defender progresses over the coming days.

With Matip on the sidelines, Klopp went with midfielders Emre Can and Gini Wijnaldum in a make-shift back three at the weekend but Joe Gomez will be another option as he’s due back from illness for the Sparta game.