Liverpool defender Jeremie Frimpong has been ruled out until after the September international break.
The Dutch right-back – who limped off during the Premier League opener against Bournemouth – will miss Liverpool’s crucial games against Newcastle on Monday, and Arsenal on the following Sunday. Both games are live on Sky Sports.
Liverpool boss Arne Slot said: “The medical team was completely right about Jeremie, to tell me I had to take him off because he’s out until the end of the international break.
“I think I got criticised a bit by taking him off. [The medical staff] felt he had an issue in his hamstring. Good call to take him off otherwise he might have been out for longer. We expect to have him back after the international break.”
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Highlights from the Premier League match between Liverpool and Bournemouth
Conor Bradley returned to training with the first team on Thursday while Joe Gomez is another right-back option in the squad – but Slot said he has not played a lot of minutes, raising doubts about his ability to start.
“Conor played for a few minutes with us today, for the first time,” said Slot, who revealed Wataru Endo and Dominik Szoboszlai could also fit in at right-back. Curtis Jones has also slotted in at right-back before for Liverpool and England.
“These things happen in a season. We have only at the moment two injuries – unfortunately it’s two for the same position,” added Slot.
“The good thing is some others can play in that position as well. Wataru played in that position for a few minutes, Dominik Szoboszlai already played in that position. There are other options we can explore.
Conor Bradley has also been injured at the start of this season
“Joe Gomez is definitely one of them. But for him to already play 20 minutes, that was already quite a lot. I wouldn’t say he had a setback but he wasn’t able to train three days in a row completely with the team. It’s completely normal if you’ve been out for so long and all of a sudden the manager needs you for 20 minutes.
“He’s training with the team so let’s see where he is on Monday, if he can be involved in the team or if he can even start. But there are other options as well.
“You cannot prepare for two injuries in one position. It would be stupid for us to have three full-backs or five left-backs – although we have three left-backs!”
Slot: Gravenberch return a boost amid defensive woes
Liverpool received some criticism for their defending in the season opener against Bournemouth, with Jamie Carragher calling it “absolutely shocking”.
However, the Reds will be boosted by the return of midfielder Ryan Gravenberch, who was suspended last Friday following a red card on the final day of last season.
“If he’s the same player as he was last season that could help us a lot,” said Slot of Gravenberch.
“If you look at the second goal we conceded [against Bournemouth] they could go from one side to the other side without being attacked. If you look back at last season, every single time Ryan played, he would have been in that position.
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Antoine Semenyo’s solo strike brought Bournemouth level at Anfield
“For him not being there and us playing with very good players but very attacking-minded players, that for example hurt us in that goal. And that wasn’t the first time where we lacked a player in that position in a counter-attack for the other team.”
Slot has plenty of right-back options, but none are ideal
Analysis by Sky Sports’ Richard Morgan:
Liverpool head coach Arne Slot will have various options to pick from to replace the injured Jeremie Frimpong at right-back after the Netherlands international suffered a hamstring injury in the champions’ opening-night win over Bournemouth, although none of them are ideal.
Frimpong will be out until after the international break, meaning Slot now needs cover for the upcoming Premier League games at Newcastle United on Monday Night Football, followed by the huge clash with title rivals Arsenal at Anfield on Sunday August 31.
Conor Bradley would be the natural choice, but the right-back has only just returned to training after his own hamstring issue saw him return early from the club’s preseason tour of the Far East.
The experienced Joe Gomez, meanwhile, would be another option, but like Bradley, the versatile defender is also only just back from an Achilles injury that cut short his summer tour of Hong Kong and Japan. And while Gomez did come on for the final 18 minutes against Bournemouth, Slot indicated that Monday’s trip to St James’ Park may come too soon for him, at least to start the game.
And that could see the Dutchman having to convert a midfield player into a right-back, with the likes of Wataru Endo – who initially replaced Frimpong on Friday Night Football, before Gomez took over in the role – Dominik Szoboszlai, or most likely Curtis Jones – who was used there against Everton and Fulham during a similar injury crisis last April, while Thomas Tuchel also played him there in his first game as England boss – all candidates.
Unless, of course, Slot opts to try recent new centre-back signing Giovanni Leoni out in an unfamiliar right-back role, as he did with Jarell Quansah in last season’s League Cup final loss to Newcastle at Wembley.
But whoever he goes for, trying to tame Newcastle’s pacy left-sided forward Harvey Barnes under the St James’ lights will be no easy task.
Liverpool’s next six fixtures
August 25: Newcastle (A), Premier League, kick-off 8pm, live on Sky Sports
August 31: Arsenal (H), Premier League, kick-off 4.30pm, live on Sky Sports
September 14: Burnley (A), Premier League, kick-off 2pm, live on Sky Sports
September 16-18: First Champions League game of the season
September 20: Everton (H), Premier League, kick-off 12.30pm
September 27: Crystal Palace (A), Premier League, kick-off 2pm
