Jurgen Klopp has revealed another major injury headache ahead of the Mersey derby, with Thiago looking certain to miss the showdown.
Liverpool boss Klopp explained that his influential midfielder has not trained because of an issue with his hip flexor muscles, which makes him a major doubt for the game which is pivotal to both teams’ season. But the Reds manager did hint that skipper Jordan Henderson has benefited from a mini break after being left on the bench for the last four matches...and should return to lead the team against Everton.
Thiago has been the only figure from last season’s regular starting midfield to feature since the turn of the year, but the manager explained he is the latest in a long list of injury issues this season. "Thiago has some problems, hip flexor, stuff like this so he was not able to train.”
Henderson though, trained strongly with a squad that according to Klopp, “looked incredibly fresh in training this week”, and have “shown all the signs” they want to front up and atone for their slump in form.
Klopp hinted strongly his skipper would return to the starting line up. He has started 91 one games since the start of last season, and Klopp said: “That’s a lot, but the 92nd one can be a good one.”
And the manager defended his captain, when he added: “Hendo is not our problem, never was, never will be, and when he is ready in good shape he played 98 percent of the games.
“He played all these games because he is a very, very, very important player for us and when he is not playing, you miss him. We don’t have to make a Jordan Henderson story, this is a team story and if you want a manager story but nothing else.”
How do you expect Liverpool to line up in the Merseyside derby? Give us your XI here
Meanwhile, Klopp admits it made sense not to see his players for two days in the immediate aftermath of last weekend's dismal defeat at Wolves.
The Reds boss admits he left the club's AXA complex on Sunday - having given the squad two days off - in an "average mood" following the previous day's 3-0 reverse at Molineux.
But with their next match not until Monday's visit of Everton for the 242nd Merseyside derby, Klopp believed the best option was to give everyone some breathing space.
"In Germany this question would have come much earlier: 'How can you give them two days off in the situation you are in?'," he said.
"You can - but it is not beneficial - to train every day. We played bad at Wolverhampton, next day we came in, made the analysis and spoke to each other and then gave them two days off because it is a very long time between Saturday and Monday (the following week).
"But of course I could have said 'Sunday training, recovery' and from Monday on we go for them (Everton). It wouldn't have been helpful at all. It would have been bad, it would have caused injuries, it would have caused a lot of problems.
"To be honest on Sunday after we spoke about everything I thought 100 per cent it makes sense that we don't see each other for two days. And it was helpful. I left on Sunday in an average mood and I came back in a good mood.
"I worked through it. I had a lot of phone calls but I was in a much better mood, a completely different mood to be honest, and that is why it was very helpful and yesterday we benefited from it."
