Liverpool may need to sign a defender after Jurgen Klopp revealed Joel Matip has suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury
- Liverpool may have to sign defender due to Joel Matip’s cruciate ligament injury
- Jurgen Klopp lacks defensive options due to Matip injury
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Liverpool could be forced to sign a defender in January, with Jurgen Klopp revealing on Wednesday night that Joel Matip tore his anterior cruciate ligament in Sunday’s win over Fulham at Anfield.
The Reds beat Sheffield United on Wednesday night following goals from Virgil Van Dijk and Dominik Szoboszlai, but Klopp confirmed after the match that the Cameroon international will be fighting to play again this season.
This means Matip could play his final game for Liverpool as the 32-year-old’s contract expires in the summer. “It’s a torn cruciate ligament,” Klopp said. “Unfortunately, this is what I expected from the first second. It looked like this. It’s very unfortunate, but that’s all.”
Liverpool do not yet know when Matip’s injury will be resolved, but he will require surgery and is likely to miss the rest of the season. He has started nine of 15 Premier League games this season.
The Reds are currently thin at the back and 20-year-old Jarell Quansah is expected to get minutes to complement Virgil van Dijk, Ibrahim Konate and Joe Gomez, who is often needed to fill in at full-back. This may prompt them to evaluate the transfer market.
Liverpool may have to sign a defender after Joel Matip suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury against Fulham.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has no defensive options due to Matip’s injury.
Matip’s injury adds to the growing list of absences for Klopp, who is also without Andy Robertson, Thiago Alcantara, Alisson, Stefan Bajcetic and Diogo Jota. Youngster Ben Doak, who was due to play over the Christmas period, limped off during an under-21 match on Tuesday.
And Alexis McAllister required stitches to his knee after a poor tackle during a collision at Bramall Lane on Wednesday night. Klopp said: “It’s an open wound. We wrapped it up. We sewed it. He couldn’t continue. Let’s see how long we’ll be gone. Hopefully not too long.
Alexis McAllister needed stitches on his knee after a disappointing match against Sheffield United