Jurgen Klopp has revealed another injury setback for Diogo Jota ahead of the Merseyside derby, and explained the likely return timeframe for the striker.
Jota made his first start in over two months in the visit to Fulham on Sunday, scoring the third goal in the Reds’ 3-1 victory.
But it came at a price, with the Portuguese now expected to miss the next three games after picking up an injury at Craven Cottage.
“Unfortunately, yes,” Klopp replied, when asked if Liverpool had any new injury concerns.
“Diogo scored the goal, felt a little bit and now we found out it’s a little bit more.
“So he’ll be out for two weeks. Besides that, no.”
That will likely rule the 27-year-old out against Everton (Wednesday), West Ham (Saturday) and Tottenham (May 5), while history could suggest there is a risk of his season being over.
It serves as another frustrating blow for player and club, with Jota limited to 19 starts so far this season and his fellow forwards struggling to fire of late.
The likelihood is that both Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah come back into the starting lineup for Wednesday’s trip to Everton, but if fit, Jota may have kept his place.
“I cannot really say a lot about it, to be honest,” Klopp continued.
“Before [the Atalanta] game he got a knock, real challenge and felt a little bit in the hip.
“That was then fine, we didn’t start him, brought him on, then he started the last game, was obviously OK, but then with the finish [he felt it].
“It’s a small one, but we’re now late in the season. It’s not a big one, two weeks is pretty much nothing, but enough to not be available. That’s it.”
Jota joins Conor Bradley, Joel Matip, Thiago and Ben Doak on the injury list heading into the derby.
