Jordan Henderson is poised to make his much-anticipated return to the starting eleven when Liverpool face Tottenham Hotspur on Thursday.
Liverpool will be desperately looking to get back into winning momentum when they lock horns with Tottenham Hotspur on Thursday. It could be a vital game for Jurgen Klopp, who is under pressure after his team failed to win a single Premier League game following the 7-0 thrashing of Crystal Palace last month.
Amid the injury crisis, Klopp has been greeted with one positive heading into this game as Jordan Henderson is now in contention to return to the pitch. He is also joined by Joel Matip, who is likely to partner Fabinho at the heart of Liverpool’s four-man backline.
“Hendo and Joel trained yesterday with the team fully. Like always with these things, we have to see how they react overnight and what they can do today, but they trained yesterday,” said Klopp in his pre-match press conference on Wednesday morning.
Henderson’s return means Thiago Alcantara and Georginio Wijnaldum should return to their no. 8 positions, with the Englishman operating in the deepest midfield role, hoping to aid the central defensive duo of Matip and Fabinho.
Elsewhere in defence, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andrew Robertson are guaranteed to occupy the full-back positions while Alisson should also continue in between the sticks, hoping to keep only his second clean sheet of this calendar year.
Unfortunately for Klopp, he will have to rely on the services of Rhys Williams and Nat Phillips as additional defensive reinforcements as both Joe Gomez and Virgil van Dijk are still sidelined. Midfielder Naby Keita is also out injured, making Curtis Jones and Alex-Oxlade Chamberlain as the two main alternatives in the middle of the park.
Moving forward, Diogo Jota is “continuing his own rehabilitation”, which guarantees a place for Mohamed Salah, with the Egyptian international hoping to make an impact alongside his usual partners in crime – Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane.
However, the likes of Xherdan Shaqiri and Takumi Minamino do provide exciting options for Klopp on the bench while Divock Origi could be an alternative for Firmino. His physicality could be useful during the late stages of the game.
Liverpool Predicted XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Fabinho, Robertson; Thiago, Henderson, Wijnaldum; Salah, Firmino, Mane