Liverpool have been boosted by the quickfire return of Ibrahima Konate ahead of Tuesday’s Champions League clash with Bayer Leverkusen.
After the Reds’ 2-1 win at home to Brighton in the Premier League, the Champions League takes centre stage.
Xabi Alonso’s Bundesliga champions Leverkusen head to Anfield on Tuesday, as Liverpool look to keep up their 100 percent winning run in the competition this season.
It looked like an arm issue could keep Konate out of the game after he went off at half-time over the weekend, but he trained as normal on Monday.
Here’s who is available and who is set to miss out against Leverkusen:
- Ibrahima Konate (wrist) – available
- Diogo Jota (rib) – out
- Alisson (hamstring) – out
- Harvey Elliott (fractured foot) – out
- Federico Chiesa (fitness) – out
As mentioned, having Konate available is a major boost, but it will be interesting to see if Arne Slot goes with Joe Gomez at Anfield after he said “It is up to me to make the decision if [Konate] plays or not.”
The 27-year-old, was exceptional in place of his teammate in the second half on Saturday, arguably deserving a first Champions League start of the season.
In terms of definite absentees, Alisson, Harvey Elliott, Federico Chiesa and Diogo Jota are all still missing and are not due back until after the break.
Youngsters James Norris and Tom Hill were involved in training on Monday and could be included in the extended squad.
Slot could consider making changes from the weekend action, especially with the visit of Aston Villa to come on Saturday night.
Andy Robertson may come in for Kostas Tsimikas, while Curtis Jones will be pushing to start after an iffy all-round midfield display from the starters against Brighton.
Liverpool’s available squad vs. Bayer Leverkusen
Goalkeepers: Kelleher, Jaros, Davies
Defenders: Van Dijk, Konate, Quansah, Gomez, Alexander-Arnold, Bradley, Robertson, Tsimikas, Norris
Midfielders: Mac Allister, Gravenberch, Szoboszlai, Jones, Endo, Morton, Nyoni, Hill
Forwards: Salah, Diaz, Nunez, Gakpo
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