Jürgen Klopp has provided an update on Ibrahima Konaté after the defender was forced off with an injury against Sparta Prague, just three days before their Premier League game against Manchester City.
The French defender pulled up in discomfort shortly after half-time in the Czech Republic. He was instantly replaced by Virgil van Dijk in another worrying development as Liverpool deals with its ongoing injury crisis. Klopp gave an immediate update after the game and revealed Konaté warned it “may be a problem” if he carried on.
The German manager was non-commital on what his status might be for Sunday’s huge Anfield showdown. Konaté will now be assessed to determine his status ahead of the game.
Klopp told TNT Sports: “He said if he carried on it may be a problem, so we will see [for Sunday].”
Speaking at his press conference, Klopp added, via the Liverpool Echo: “Ibou said to me ‘if I do another sprint, it could be set’. Should be fine but we don’t know.”
He also confirmed that Joe Gomez, who was replaced by Conor Bradley at half-time, did not pick up an injury. He said: “Joe Gomez is fine, played a lot, rotation. So let’s see with Ibou.”
Liverpool already has a lengthy injury list before taking on the reigning champions. Alisson Becker, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joël Matip, Thiago Alcântara, Stefan Bajčetić, Ryan Gravenberch, Curtis Jones and Diogo Jota all ruled out.
However, Mohamed Salah successfully made his return in the Czech Republic. He had a goal ruled out for offside in the 5-1 win but appeared to come through unscathed in just his third Reds appearance in 2024 as he played 16 minutes off the bench.
While Konaté gave Klopp a potential new headache, it was a job well done for the Reds as Darwin Núñez scored a first-half double to fire them to a 5-1 first-leg win. After the game, Klopp hailed the Uruguayan striker for his role.
He said: “He had absolutely more than OK first season but he had to adapt, that’s done, settled in the middle of the team. He loves to play for this team together with these boys and has quality coming out of his ears to be honest.
“It’s like strikers are, they score and then they don’t score. Is he at his absolute peak in general? Not now for us. But can he develop? Yes. Is he a threat all the time? Yes.
“When he’s not scoring he for us he’s incredibly important as he is a constant threat and gives us spaces in areas and options.”
