Liverpool’s injury woes are going from bad to worse as the Reds have lost another player to injury ahead of their Champions League clash with Ajax. Jurgen Klopp’s side will face the mighty Dutch champions in their Group A game, after being hammered 4-1 by Napoli in the opener. While Liverpool were plotting to pick their first win of the tournament at home, they will now have to make do without left-back Andy Robertson.
The Merseyside club have already endured a tough start to the season, collecting just two wins from seven games in all competitions. They are currently languishing seventh in the Premier League table, six points behind leaders Arsenal and five behind defending champions Manchester City. Injuries to key players have been piling up on the Reds which have hindered their progress this season.
Robertson to miss Liverpool’s Chelsea showdown as well
Andy Robertson has joined a host of Liverpool players who are nursing their knocks on the sidelines. Naby Keita, Curtis Jones, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and new signing Calvin Ramsay are all out and unavailable since the start of the season. Same goes for their availability against Ajax as none of them has recovered in time for the home game.
While the Reds lost against Napoli in their last game, they also lost their 28-year-old left-back who picked up a knee injury. Robertson did play the full game as he suffered the knock late into the injury time of the second-half. However, Klopp has confirmed that the Scot won’t make it for their next Champions League outing. Talking about the left-back and the club’s other casualties, the German said:
“Robbo [Andy Robertson] now is not 100 per cent. [He felt something] Very late, 93rd or whatever minute – actually he felt it the next day only. But yeah, he is out for at least, I would say, after the international break. Curtis [Jones], not available.
“I don’t expect him Naby Keita as well to go on international duty. The expected return date is somewhere in October, that’s why we had to make the decision. With Ox it is the same and that’s why the two boys are not in the Champions League squad because of their expected return. It can differ a little bit, but we had to make the decision now or last week and that’s why we made the decision.”
Add to the misery, Liverpool have also stated that Robertson will miss the huge clash against Chelsea next weekend. The Reds were slated to face Wolves last weekend in the Premier League, only for the postponement of the fixtures due to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s demise.
Klopp and co. will now resume their league affairs directly against a Chelsea team which will be led by their new gaffer Graham Potter. Kostas Tsimikas is now in line to cover up for Andy Robertson against both Ajax as well as Chelsea. The former Olympiacos left-back as heavily impressed deputising first-choice Robertson and even made his case to start over the Scotland captain.
While Robertson has just garnered an assist in 6 Premier League outings this season, Tsimikas already has 2 in 5 games. Klopp will be relieved to have such a talented deputy in that position who will definitely look to grab this opportunity to make it difficult for Robertson to return to the fold.