Among the Premier League’s great festive traditions is the lengthy injury list that piles up between Christmas and the New Year as fixture congestion begins to take its toll.
Only good fortune has stopped the situation being even worse in this unconventional season, with such a short build-up to the 2020-21 campaign worsening the strain on top flight players.
Nonetheless, there are a number of high-profile names who have suffered setbacks since Boxing Day, with Liverpool‘s defensive crisis deteriorating once again.
They are not the only club who find their injury worries mounting heading into the final gameweek of the calendar year, with the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea, Southampton and Sheffield United also missing key men.
Here is the latest injury news ahead of the next round of matches.
Joel Matip (Liverpool)
With Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez both out for the foreseeable future, Jurgen Klopp was at least buoyed by the return of Joel Matip. That was before the centre-back was forced off in the second half of the Reds’ 1-1 draw with West Bromwich Albion on Sunday with an adductor injury.
Liverpool will assess him on Monday, with Klopp unable to confirm how many games he is set to miss. “I am not sure how serious it is now, but it was serious enough that he had to leave the pitch,” he said. “The rest of the information I will get [on Monday].”
Naby Keita (Liverpool)
Even before Matip’s injury, Klopp had received fresh bad news concerning Naby Keita. The midfielder was unable to start against the Baggies with an unspecified “fitness issue”. The Guinea international has been plagued with injury problems since arriving at Anfield in 2018.
“He felt a muscle again,” Klopp told reporters on Sunday night. “I don’t know exactly how long [it will be], but he was not ready for today and not for Wednesday, I think. We will see.”
Hakim Ziyech (Chelsea)
Chelsea’s Hakim Ziyech was expected to return on Boxing Day against Arsenal, but he was sorely missed as his side lacked creativity in an abject 3-1 defeat at the Emirates.
Frank Lampard has admitted the Moroccan may also miss the Blues’ next game against Aston Villa, grouping him with Ben Chilwell who was a doubt. “I can’t give you an answer [if they’ll play] at the moment,” Lampard said ahead of Saturday’s London derby. “I’m not sure if they will be fit for either game [against Arsenal and Aston Villa].”
While Chilwell eventually started against Arsenal, whether Ziyech will be fit to face Villa remains unclear.
Victor Lindelof (Man Utd)
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has confirmed Lindelof had to be taken off in Manchester United’s 2-2 draw with Leicester City on Boxing Day due to a recurrence of his chronic back problem. The Swedish international has battled the problem for over a year.
Solskjaer stopped short of discussing exactly what treatment the defender will require, but admitted to BT Sport that “we might have to do something, let’s see what it is.” Lindelof is unlikely to play any part in United’s upcoming fixtures against Wolves and Aston Villa in the coming week.
Jannik Vestergaard (Southampton)
With Southampton already missing Danny Ings and Nathan Redmond with muscle injuries, Ralph Hasenhuttl now has another concern with defender Jannik Vestergaard ruled out for a month with a knee injury.
The Dane missed the weekend’s draw with Fulham and is expected to miss around a month. “Jannik is definitely out for four weeks – or even more. I don’t know,” Hasenhuttl told a press conference.
Thomas Partey (Arsenal)
Partey hasn’t featured since the 2-0 defeat to Tottenham in the north London derby, but Mikel Arteta has provided a positive update after suggesting he is set to return to training in the coming days.
“He hasn’t started to train with us yet so I think he’s still a few more days away,” the Arsenal boss said after seeing the midfielder miss out against Chelsea.
James Rodriguez (Everton)
Everton have suffered a double blow ahead of Monday night’s trip to Manchester City with both Richarlison (concussion) and James Rodriguez (calf) on the sidelines.
The Colombian’s injury was initially thought to be nothing more than a minor tweak, but he will have missed at least six games since he is not expected to return this year, missing out against City and in the New Year’s Day clash with West Ham.
Sander Berge (Sheff Utd)
As if Sheffield United’s plight were not desperate enough as they face up to the prospect of entering 2021 with just two points, Chris Wilder has confirmed midfielder Sander Berge has undergone surgery for a thigh injury.
Wilder described it as “a huge blow for us with him being out between 3/4 months”.
Follow i sport on Facebook for more Premier League news, interviews and features
More on the Premier League
- Sam Johnstone tells Sam Cunningham why he is finally ready to become a Premier League star
- The making of Timo Werner: How his father’s motivation and ‘scary’ power meant Chelsea star was always destined for the top
- Eric Dier reveals why he stormed into the stands to confront an abusive Spurs fan
- Daniel Storey: How to lose supporters and alienate Messi, by FC Barcelona
- An apology to Man Utd’s Jesse Lingard
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3rvFB7W
Post a Comment