Cody Gakpo will make his Liverpool debut, while Naby Keita should feature when the Reds take on Wolves in the FA Cup on Saturday.
Liverpool were beaten by Brentford in their last Premier League game and they will be desperate to bounce back strongly with a victory when they take on Wolverhampton Wanderers at Anfield on Friday night.
The FA Cup is probably Liverpool’s best chance of winning a trophy this season. And it will be interesting to see if they can raise their performance levels and grind out a convincing result here Meanwhile, the home side will be without Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota, Arthur Melo, and Virgil van Dijk due to their respective injuries.
The Dutch international defender picked up a hamstring injury last time out against Brentford. And van Dijk is set to be sidelined for a few weeks, Jurgen Klopp confirmed in his pre-match press conference.
The German tactician confirmed van Dijk will be out for a few weeks, saying, “It’s not a short-term and I had longer-term injuries as well in my career as a manager. So, it’s somewhere in between. He will be out for a few weeks, definitely.”
Liverpool vs Wolves Preview: Probable Lineups, Prediction, Tactics, Team News & Key Stats
Jordan Henderson is set to return after missing the last game due to a concussion. Meanwhile, January signing Cody Gakpo is likely to make his debut for the Reds versus Wolves, Klopp confirmed ahead of the game.
Klopp told liverpoolfc.com, “Yes, he is in contention. He will be involved in the squad, of course. How exactly we will have to decide in the next few hours, but that’s fine. First impressions of him are brilliant.”
“With all these things, injured strikers and stuff like this, then you see a guy who is obviously a natural footballer on the pitch and knows where the goal is, it is a lift for everybody. So, that’s cool and somehow he will be involved, definitely.”
Jurgen Klopp has confirmed that Alisson Becker will be the first-choice goalkeeper in FA Cup, with Liverpool lining up in a 4-3-3 formation in front of him. Calvin Ramsay is expected to start as the right-back here in place of Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Meanwhile, Kostas Tsimikas should start, with Klopp resting his first-choice fullbacks for this game. At the heart of the defence, Nathaniel Phillips could partner with Joe Gomez. In the absence of van Dijk, Klopp cannot overuse the likes of Joel Matip and Ibrahima Konate.
Jordan Henderson is expected to anchor the midfield on his return, with Naby Keita and Curtis Jones alongside him. As for the front three, Fabio Carvalho and Mohamed Salah are expected to line up as the wide forwards, and Cody Gakpo will lead the line for the Reds. Darwin Nunez will be a backup option on the bench.
Predicted Liverpool XI: Alisson; Ramsay, Phillips, Gomez, Tsimikas; Keita, Henderson, Jones; Salah, Gakpo, Carvalho