Team news: Liverpool confirm huge injury blow + Klopp issues update on Matip

Liverpool have confirmed a major injury blow with the news that Fabinho has been ruled out until the New Year with an ankle ligament injury.

Fabinho limped off midway through the first half of Liverpool’s 1-1 draw with Napoli in the Champions League on Wednesday night after falling awkwardly during a collision involving Dejan Lovren and Hirving Lozano.

The Brazilian international looked in discomfort when he was replaced by Gini Wijnaldum in the 19th minute and fears grew that he’d picked up a serious injury when he was photographed wearing a protective boot after the game.

The 26-year-old has now undergone a scan and Liverpool have confirmed on Liverpoolfc.com that Fabinho has been ruled out until 2020 after the scan results showed ankle ligament damage.

The club haven’t put a firm timescale on his recovery but journalist Paul Joyce says Fabinho is facing up to eight weeks on the sidelines which would see him missing at least 10 games across all competitions.

Among those fixtures are tricky Premier League games against Leicester City and Everton while an eight-week lay off would see Fabinho also miss huge games with Tottenham and Manchester United in mid-January.

The news will come as a huge blow to Jurgen Klopp as Fabinho has been a vital player for the German coach this season and has been a key reason behind their unbeaten start to the league campaign.

Thankfully, Klopp confirmed at his press conference this afternoon that Naby Keita is fully fit and available for selection so he’s an option to replace Fabinho in the middle of the park over the coming weeks.

Klopp also provided an update on the fitness of Joel Matip and revealed the defender will undergo a scan today to determine how much longer he’ll be on the sidelines for as he continues to recover from a knee injury.

Matip hasn’t played since the 1-1 draw with Man Utd in October so Klopp will be hoping for positive news from the scan results today as he prepares his Liverpool side to take on Brighton at Anfield on Saturday afternoon.