Liverpool fans and club officials alike will be disheartened to hear that Liverpool’s injury list has grown even longer. 23-year-old French central defender Ibrahima Konaté adds to Liverpool injury woes is now the latest addition to the treatment room as he is set to face two-three weeks on the side-line with a hamstring issue.
With key players like Diogo Jota, Luis Diaz, Roberto Firmino, Joel Matip and Virgil van Dijk already out through injuries of their own and the club performing poorly, this news will come as another blow in an already disappointing campaign.
Ibrahima Konaté is expected to miss games against Wolves, Everton and Newcastle United – with the defender also a doubt for the first leg of the club’s Champions League round-of-sixteen tie against Real Madrid in a month’s time.
Konate was a huge part of last season’s success, and has been one of the only players in decent form this season. He did spend much of the beginning part of the season out through injury, but since returning has been solid. With Virgil Van Dijk and Joel Matip already sidelined, it leaves Clop with only two senior centre backs fit – Joe Gomez and Nathaniel Phillips.
With numbers at centre back already frighteningly low, will Liverpool make a last minute acquisition in the window or be forced to improvise, adapt and overcome much like they did in the 2020-21 season?
The answer is likely the latter – the club will be very concerned about the fitness of players and questions need to be asked why the playing staff are spending so much time on the sidelines, ruling them out of games that could swing the club’s season. The side that faced Real Madrid in Paris – in last season’s Champions League final – has only appeared together once this season, excluding players that have left the club since. It’s a telling sign of the colossal problem Klopp and his backroom staff face.
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