With Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund aiming to win the Europa League, both sides are expected to play their full-strength lineups on Thursday. However, the Reds could be without Roberto Firmino, while midfielder Ilkay Gundogan is doubtful for the Bundesliga outfit.
Firmino has been an important member of the Liverpool first-team squad, scoring nine goals and producing eight assists in the season so far. However, he has been suffering from a hamstring problem and has not played a match for the Reds since March.
The Brazilian has been making good progress, but Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp is still unsure whether he will be ready for Thursday’s game.
“Since last Saturday, not too much has happened,” Klopp was quoted as saying by Liverpool’s official website. “We are not sure about Roberto [Firmino]; he is for sure a big step ahead, but we are not sure about what we can do with him for Thursday.”
Another big absentee for the Reds is holding midfielder Lucas Leiva. The 29-year-old Brazilian has been suffering from a thigh injury that has kept him out of action since the beginning of March. Klopp confirmed that Lucas is also back in training, but confirmed that he would not feature against Dortmund.
“Lucas is back in training but was a long, long time [out],” added Klopp. “Hopefully he should not be an option for the game, unless we needed him for example, so he has to carry on training. Nothing has happened; nobody else is injured.”
Dortmund awaiting Gundogan tests
Meanwhile, in the Dortmund camp, manager Thomas Tuchel is still awaiting test results for star midfielder Ilkay Gundogan. The Turkish-born German international has been an instrumental cog in the Dortmund machinery and Die Borussien will be looking to get him back to full fitness as soon as possible.
“It is going to be tight, but sometimes tight is enough! We will wait and see how today’s session goes,” Tuchel was quoted as saying by Dortmund’s official website. “Then we will look at how his foot copes. However, we also need to respect that fact that he was out for a while.”
Firmino gives Liverpool attack a different dimension
While they do have two fit out and out strikers, Klopp will be hoping that Firmino returns for the Dortmund game. Christian Benteke was expected to take up the burden of scoring the goals at Liverpool, but the Belgian has disappointed so far, netting only eight times in all competitions this season.
Liverpool’s England international Daniel Sturridge has been injured for most of the season and is still trying to find his feet after making his comeback.
However, Firmino gives the side a different dimension when he plays for the Reds. The Brazilian is more a false 9 than an out and out striker, which gives Klopp more men in the middle of the park to control the game.
Liverpool will certainly need reinforcement in the centre of the pitch to counter Dortmund’s intensity and high press. As such, Firmino’s presence could make a big difference to the Red’s success at Signal Iduna Park.
