Jürgen Klopp will bid farewell to Liverpool in just over a week’s time when his side ends the Premier League campaign at home to Wolves. There is not going to be a Premier League title on the line but it is sure to be an emotional occasion at Anfield.
Before that, the Reds travel to Aston Villa on Monday night, looking to continue where it left off against Tottenham last weekend. Villa still has plenty to play for, needing a win to make sure of fourth spot and a place in next season’s Champions League.
Klopp put his players through their paces at the AXA Training Centre on Friday but there appeared to be six players missing from the session before the trip to Villa Park.
Diogo Jota has missed Liverpool’s last three matches after picking up a muscle injury in the win over Fulham. Klopp expected him to be out for two weeks but he is yet to return and was not pictured in Friday’s session.
Reds defender Andy Robertson was also missing from the pictures, having scored in the victory against Spurs. He came off after an hour at Anfield but did not appear to have a problem when he left the pitch. The Scotland international has already missed chunks of the season through injury.
Liverpool is set to confirm that Joël Matip and Thiago Alcântara will leave when their contracts expire at the end of the season, and the pair remain long-term absentees. Bobby Clark will also miss the last two matches, while Ben Doak has been sidelined since December.
There were call-ups for youngsters Trey Nyoni and Kaide Gordon too after first-team involvement this campaign. Gordon put pen-to-paper on a new long-term deal at Anfield earlier this week.
As things stand, Liverpool can still mathematically win the title, although a victory for Manchester City at Fulham on Saturday will end those slim chances. And Klopp does not expect the reigning champions or Arsenal to slip up.
Speaking in his pre-match press conference, he said: “It’s not number one every morning on the priority list. We can all read the table. Do we expect them to lose? City has three games. Difficult to see that. Arsenal, two games. Difficult. They both play before us. Let’s talk on Monday if they both lose.”
Liverpool.com says: The Reds will be wanting six points from the last two matches to end the season, and the Klopp era, on a high. Many supporters are already looking ahead to the final day against Wolves but Liverpool will have to be at its best to beat Villa. If it turns up with one eye on the end of the season, it will be comfortably beaten.
