Ibrahima Konate, Diogo Jota – Liverpool fitness and injury updates ahead of Tottenham

Ibrahima Konate, Diogo Jota – Liverpool fitness and injury updates ahead of Tottenham

In his last four games, Klopp has made just one change to his starting lineup, leaving Konate out for Wednesday’s 2-1 win over West Ham.

The Frenchman has been ruled out as a precaution, after a series of minor problems in recent weeks, with Joel Matip coming on and scoring the decisive goal in East London.

Liverpool now have a run of four games in 11 days and there is the possibility of more substitutions against Tottenham on Sunday.
One could be enforced, with Jota taking a mid-week punch, but while he provides an update on his squad, Klopp insisted he “should be fine”.

‘Ibou is coming back. I think Naby will train today. I haven’t received the medical report yet, but probably,” he told reporters.
“Nobody else. We have a couple of players outside, everyone knows them.

“But what’s more, since the last game … Diogo has had a blow to his back, but he should be fine.
“We will see how it develops. Other than that, we should be fine.

If Jota is not deemed fully fit – or if it is decided not to risk a player who has started in each of the last seven games – Darwin Nunez is an option to replace.

With Konate also returning, the manager faces an important decision whether to reinstate his first-choice centre-back or reward Matip’s fine display against West Ham.

Also.. 

‘Not the Liverpool trademark’ – Ben Jacobs reviews Jurgen Klopp’s Jude Bellingham u-turn ahead of summer transfer window

‘Not Liverpool’s trademark’ – Ben Jacobs assesses Jurgen Klopp’s U-turn at Bellingham ahead of summer term

Ben Jacobs has said Liverpool need a “restructuring” this summer and the signing of Jude Bellingham would prevent that.

Jurgen Klopp was believed to have made the Borussia Dortmund star his main transfer target for the upcoming spell, until he recently decided it would be unwise to spend so much money on a single player when his side needed a major overhaul.

Despite winning our last three games, we have struggled with consistency all season and Jacobs explained why it was a wise decision on the part of our German tactician to end his hunt for the teenager.

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, he said: “The sad reality for Liverpool is that they know they need a makeover, and Bellingham is perhaps the most outstanding player they can get and appreciate, but when the majority of the budget goes to him, he could be at the expense of the renovation.

“It almost became a choice for Liverpool, especially without a Champions League, or they wanted to go all in for Bellingham in a protracted race and bidding war, with no guarantee of success, and then find out that either they have it but they can’t bring them others either didn’t get into what they wanted or didn’t get it and wasted their time and energy getting sucked into a bidding war. “It’s not Liverpool’s trademark.”

It has been a shock to almost all Liverpool fans to know that we are no longer in the running for Bellingham.

We understand that there are many other players out there, but with his class and leadership at a young age, he seemed to be the answer to many of our current problems.

His transfer fee would have been over £100m, but considering he could be a mainstay on our side for the next ten years, it would have made financial sense, wouldn’t it?

Some senior figures at Anfield are hoping the Birmingham City Academy graduate can spend another season at Dortmund to ensure they have time to make the 100% right move for him and his career.

At this point next year, Bellingham is approaching the final 12 months of his current contract with the Bundesliga side, so it will be interesting to see what decision he makes over the next few months.