Liverpool have been dealt a huge injury blow as Diogo Jota could be out for around ‘two months’ after suffering cruciate ligament damage, according to Portuguese newspaper Record.
Jota is scheduled for further scans on Monday after he was carried off on a stretcher amid concerns about his left knee, prompting fears of a prolonged absence from the pitch.
However, the initial assessment suggests that the injury may not be severely serious, and it is unlikely to jeopardise the remainder of the season.
He is expected to miss the Carabao Cup final next weekend and crucial matches in both the UEFA Europa League and Premier League. However, there is optimism that he could make a return in time to conclude the season, and his participation in Euro 2024 is not in doubt.
With Jota set to be unavailable, Jurgen Klopp will turn to Mohamed Salah, Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz, and Cody Gakpo as his senior forwards.
However, there are uncertainties regarding Nunez’s short-term fitness, and Salah may have played more minutes than the club’s medical staff had initially anticipated when he replaced Jota before half-time at Brentford.
Nunez, Jota, and Curtis Jones were all withdrawn during Saturday’s 4-1 victory game at Gtech Community Stadium.
Klopp told his post-match press conference: “We have to see how much it costs us – we don’t know that yet.
“Curtis got a knock on the lower part of his shin, or above the ankle. We will see what that means. It was what he felt, but he was not 100 per cent sure. That Curtis cannot play on tells you that it must be something because he would have played on at all costs.
“Diogo looks probably the worst; I didn’t see it back but I heard the pictures didn’t look great as well, so we have to see there.
“Darwin, we took off because he felt really a little but that was obviously today enough to immediately push the break and that’s what we did, so we took him off and brought Cody on and that worked out really well.”
Asked if Jones was on crutches following the injury, Klopp replied: “Yes, but it’s normal. I didn’t speak to him [yet], I don’t have time because I more or less get carried around here in the stadium to have interviews and stuff like this.
“I don’t know how it developed during the second half because I saw him at half-time when it was alright-ish, but I don’t know what happened since then.”
Read More Liverpool Coverage:
- Roberto De Zerbi Flattered To Be Linked With Clubs Such As Liverpool As Search For Klopp’s Successor Continues
- Bayer Leverkusen Sporting Director Simon Rolfes Confident Xabi Alonso Will Stay At Club Next Season
- Jurgen Klopp ‘Over The Moon’ To Welcome Back Mohamed Salah
- Jurgen Klopp Offers Injury Update On Darwin Nunez, Curtis Jones And Diogo Jota
- Jurgen Klopp Confirms Thiago Alcantara Will Play Again This Season Despite Suffering Muscle Injury