Jurgen Klopp insisted Liverpool would cope without Philippe Coutinho after his injury against Sunderland last month and, to an extent, they have.
Seven points from a possible 12 in the Premier League since that 2-0 victory is a respectable return and one that finds the Reds second in the table, six points behind Chelsea.
Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Adam Lallana have produced the goods in Coutinho’s absence, with Mane scoring the late winner against Everton on Monday.
December 31’s game against Manchester City still can’t come around quick enough, though, with Coutinho targeting a return before 2017.
And so, with the Brazilian close to recovery, let’s take a moment to remind ourselves of what Liverpool have been missing over the past month or so.
The video below, compiled by YouTuber G Element, showcases Coutinho’s best moments this season and features a number of incredible skills and goals.
There can be no doubt: Coutinho is world class.
However, while the Brazil international remains confident of featuring against City on New Year’s Eve, Jurgen Klopp doubts whether he will recover in time.
Speaking ahead of next week’s game against Stoke City, Klopp explained how Coutinho hasn’t yet returned to full training.
“Unfortunately we don’t have him back in training,” he said, per the Daily Mail. “There’s no reason to think when he is back. We don’t want to rush the situation.
“It was a serious injury. And it still is. We need to wait. We cannot rush it because there are a few games now. That cannot influence us.
“He was on a very good way and then it became a little bit more difficult because of a reaction in the ankle. We had to cool down the situation a little bit but he is still in a good way.
“The game everybody is dreaming of is the City. It was clear from the first second that this would be really unlikely, but it was Phil’s dream.
“It’s not more likely than before but I don’t want to say it’s not possible.”