Liverpool team news: Klopp confirms boost but 6 players could miss Brighton trip

Liverpool will be looking to bounce back from consecutive defeats when they take on Brighton at the Amex Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

Ahead of the game, Jurgen Klopp has been speaking to the media at his pre-match press conference today and he’s offered a full team news and injury update including the latest on Jordan Henderson, Joel Matip, Dejan Lovren, Adan Lallana and Joe Gomez.

Henderson missed Liverpool’s FA Cup defeat at Wolves on Monday night due to a minor calf injury that he sustained during the loss at Manchester City last week. Klopp has confirmed the midfielder will train today but it remains to be seen whether tomorrow’s trip to Brighton will come too soon.

Matip has been on the sidelines since suffering a broken collarbone during the final stages of Liverpool’s Champions League win over Napoli last month. The centre-back handed the Reds a boost after returning to full training on Thursday but Klopp says the defender will need to be assessed before a decision is made over his availability this weekend.

Liverpool’s options at centre-back are further limited by the fact that Lovren has been ruled out with a hamstring injury that he picked up during the early stages of the FA Cup defeat to Wolves. Klopp says the injury isn’t serious but it’s enough to keep the Croatian international out for at least the next two games.

With Gomez still working his way back to full fitness from a fractured leg that he sustained against Burnley over a month ago, Liverpool may be forced to deploy Fabinho alongside Virgil van Dijk in the middle of defence this weekend.

Lallana also sat out the defeat at Molineux after picking up a muscle injury in training ahead of the FA Cup third round tie and the midfielder will remain on the sidelines against Brighton tomorrow afternoon.

Klopp told Liverpoolfc.com:

“Joel trained yesterday for the first time with the team, which is already really good but we have to see. We have to decide it day by day how he is doing, I am not 100 per cent sure. He feels good and that’s good for us, of course.

“Hendo will train today for the first time, we see what that then means exactly. Adam [is] out, Dejan [is] out and Joe, of course, [is] out.

“All are improving obviously, that’s clear. I don’t know if a few are available and for a few I know they are not available, so that’s the situation.”

“I don’t know [how long Lovren will be out]. It is serious otherwise he would play, but it is not that serious. It is a muscle thing and I would expect him back after maybe Crystal Palace, I am not sure. We have to see.”

With Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain still recovering from a serious knee ligament injury, it means Liverpool could be without six first team players for the trip to the south coast tomorrow if Matip and Henderson are ruled out.

That won’t be an ideal situation for Klopp as he looks to bounce back from consecutive defeats to Man City and Wolves with a win over Brighton to cement Liverpool’s place at the top of the Premier League table.