Jurgen Klopp is in desperate need for Dejan Lovren to face Bayern Munich. Liverpool are lacking defensive options for what could be a defining game in their season.
There’s no doubt that Liverpool want the Premier League title above all else. That doesn’t mean they have no interest in the Champions League, however, a tournament they know they can win.
The Reds meet Bayern Munich next week but will do so without Virgil van Dijk. The Dutchman received a yellow card in the last group-stage game against Napoli, suspending him for the first-leg against Bayern.
That’s become an even bigger problem after both Joe Gomez and Dejan Lovren picked up long-term injuries. Gomez hasn’t played since early December, while Lovren has been out since January 7th.
No one expects Gomez to return for the Bayern game after his recent surgery. There are hopes over Lovren, though.
Liverpool have travelled to Spain for warm-weather training, from where Klopp has given an update on his two injured defenders.
Klopp on Lovren facing Bayern
“Dejan is not here and Joe is not here,” he told the official club site.
“That’s never a good sign, I would say, but we will try everything to make Dejan available for Munich. It will be a tight race.
“For him, it makes sense in the moment to be in another place to do what he has to do. It wouldn’t have helped if he was here, so we will try everything – that’s clear.”
Klopp doesn’t sound very confident that Lovren will face Bayern. There’s now less than a week to go but the Liverpool boss is none the wiser.
Even if Lovren does play, Klopp will be tackling Bayern with a defender who can’t possibly be match fit.
That’s far from ideal but may still be the best option, with both Van Dijk and Gomez unavailable.
Let’s just hope Joel Matip is being kept somewhere safe – there’ll be all kind of trouble if he isn’t at his absolute best.