The Liverpool squad trained at Melwood on Monday afternoon, with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain joining preparations for a huge clash with Bayern Munich.
After a welcome break and a trip to Marbella, the Reds are on the eve of another Champions League knockout tie, with Bayern visiting Anfield on Tuesday night.
Niko Kovac’s side have endured a difficult campaign so far, but their place in the last 16 is testament to their enduring quality, and both Jurgen Klopp and Jordan Henderson were quick to stress that in the buildup.
Following their press conference at the stadium, the pair were back alongside the rest of the squad at Melwood, with Oxlade-Chamberlain among their number.
The 25-year-old has been sidelined since last April with a knee injury, but is closing in on a return to full training, and was part of the warmup for Liverpool’s open session.
Neither Dejan Lovren or Roberto Firmino were involved, however, with the former still out with a hamstring injury and the latter now a doubt for midweek due to a virus.
The hope will be that Firmino was simply not involved as a precaution, but Daniel Sturridge is being considered on standby to start next to Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane.
Xherdan Shaqiri is back after an abdominal injury kept him out of the 3-0 win over Bournemouth last time out, and if Firmino is absent could come straight back into the starting lineup too.
Mane is arguably the Reds’ most in-form player in 2019 so far, and speaking to This Is Anfield this week, Bundesliga reporter Ibrahim Naber said he is “very curious how Hummels and Sule can deal with” both him and Salah.
Henderson is almost certain to start as Lovren, Joe Gomez and the suspended Virgil van Dijk miss out, with Fabinho expected to shift into defence and the captain lining up next to Gini Wijnaldum and Naby Keita.
Teenager Ki-Jana Hoever is available as cover at centre-back, with he and fellow academy talent Corey Whelan both in training on Monday.
Salah will make his 20th appearance in the Champions League proper for Liverpool, looking to add to the 13 goals and five assists he’s tallied in the previous 19.
In his pre-match press conference, Klopp insisted Bayern have “all that you need to be successful,” and urged his side to defend together in order to progress.
“It depends all on how we defend in general, that’s it,” he explained.
“There will be a lot of moments where we have to defend, we worked on that obviously, we tried to work on that because we respect the quality of Bayern Munich a lot.
“Speed, technique, experience, all that you need to be successful is there. We respect that and try to make the best of the situation.”
Liverpool Squad Training on Monday
Goalkeepers: Alisson, Mignolet, Kelleher
Defenders: Van Dijk (Suspended), Matip, Alexander-Arnold, Robertson, Moreno, Camacho, Hoever, Whelan
Midfielders: Fabinho, Wijnaldum, Henderson, Keita, Milner, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Lallana, Woodburn
Forwards: Salah, Mane, Shaqiri, Sturridge, Origi
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