Alisson Becker will keep his place between the sticks, but Mohamed Salah is an injury doubt as Liverpool get set to face Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup.
Liverpool will be aiming to book a place in the semi-finals of the 2021/22 FA Cup when they face off against EFL Championship side Nottingham Forest in the Last Eight stage at the City Ground on Sunday evening.
Leading up to the game, manager Jurgen Klopp is sweating over the fitness of star forward Mohamed Salah, who has seemingly picked up a leg injury after the midweek clash against Arsenal. In addition, Trent Alexander-Arnold has been ruled with a hamstring problem, but James Milner is back in the reckoning after recovering from a bout of illness.
Nottingham Forest vs Liverpool Preview: Probable Lineups, Prediction, Tactics, Team News & Key Stats
Speaking about potential replacements for Alexander-Arnold, Klopp name-checked Milner and Joe Gomez as options in his pre-match presser, saying, “We have Millie when he is then not ill anymore, we have obviously Joe and, theoretically, we can change system as well, so we have these kinds of things.”
Given that Milner has not played for a while, it will not be surprising to see Joe Gomez get the nod at right-back on Sunday. Ibrahima Konate could also feature from kick-off, replacing Joel Matip as Virgil van Dijk’s central defensive partner. However, Andrew Robertson is expected to continue at left-back with Kostas Tsimikas ill.
Klopp also confirmed that cup goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher would not be involved against Nottingham Forest on Sunday. Instead, Liverpool will go in with their first-choice custodian, Alisson Becker. “The FA Cup is Ali,” Klopp said in his presser.
Moving into the midfield department, Fabinho could be given a breather by the manager, with Jordan Henderson expected to move into the No. 6 position at the City Ground. Naby Keita and Curtis Jones should feature on either side of him as the remaining two central midfielders. However, Klopp could also call upon Harvey Elliott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to fill in the positions.
As for the attacking unit, Mohamed Salah’s involvement is a major doubt after Klopp described his situation during the press conference, saying, “Mo felt his foot again a little bit after the game, so we have to see what we do with that.” In his place, Takumi Minamino, who reserves his best for cup competitions, should start on the right flank.
Luis Diaz, who has been an excellent signing for Liverpool, should continue out on the left-wing. But there should be another change though the middle as Roberto Firmino, who scored a goal in his cameo against Arsenal, should replace Sadio Mane.
Liverpool Predicted XI: Alisson, Gomez, Konate, van Dijk, Robertson, Jones, Henderson, Keita, Minamino, Firmino, Diaz
I want Chelsea and Liverpool on Fa cup final,I feel we were robed of a goal and red card during Carabao cup at Wembley Chelsea could have won the match,Chelsea fan.