Klopp on Fabinho's fitness, Thiago and Ox plan, and squad solutions
Jürgen Klopp will consider when to call on Fabinho after his return to team training ahead of the clash with Leicester City, while the manager provided further detail regarding the recoveries of Thiago Alcantara and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
Fabinho has not featured in a game since sustaining an injury during the Champions League clash with FC Midtjylland at Anfield on October 27.
But the Brazil international returned to sessions with his teammates at the AXA Training Centre this week and will now be monitored with a view to his availability for matches.
Thiago and Oxlade-Chamberlain are continuing to progress, too, as the Reds seek to strengthen their condition for the long-term demands of the season.
During the second part of his pre-Leicester press conference, Klopp discussed the approach to handling returns to fitness and was asked whether the club might be active in the January transfer window in response to a series of injuries.
Read his answers below…
On whether Thiago had a setback in his recovery or his length of time out is a consequence of the injury he sustained…
It’s a consequence of the injury; it was a hit, it was a straight kick on his knee. So, it’s a consequence of the injury. We have to deal with the consequences of injuries and the accidents that happen, fouls, whatever. In this game, they were fouls, harsh fouls. If he could have played before [now] he would have played before, but he couldn’t. But he is out there on the pitch, he is running, he is doing a lot of stuff, so it will not be too long anymore. In the beginning, because the pictures looked… the same day, we got the horrible pictures from Virgil [van Dijk’s injury] and then we were kind of relieved that it’s not that serious for Thiago. But it was always clear it will not be in two or three days. In the first few days we thought it would settle quickly. But it didn’t and that’s what we have to accept then. That’s why we will not rush it. We prepare him for the rest of the season, not for the first game he can play again. That’s the situation.
On which of Thiago, Fabinho and Oxlade-Chamberlain are training with the full group…
Players have to train in the big training sessions with the team – in team training, how we call it – and not only once. If it’s really serious and we have no other players then maybe one session has to be enough from time to time. It doesn’t happen really often, I can’t remember when it happened last time. But usually you prepare the players not only for one game and that means they need to be part of it. Fabinho was part of that. What we make of that, we will see because I don’t know yet how he reacts and all that stuff. But Fabinho was part of the normal team training.
On the possibility of Liverpool strengthening during the January transfer window…
We will see. I don’t know what we can do in January, to be honest. I have no idea. That we look for solutions, that we look at the transfer market, that’s clear of course. But in the moment we have the situation we have. You cannot compare situations really, but I only want to mention it. When I came in 2008 to [Borussia] Dortmund, my two centre-halves were 19 and turned 20 that winter and we played with them for the entire time, pretty much – [Mats] Hummels and [Neven] Subotic. We have talents here. They are young, yes, 18, 19, 23. And then we have more experienced players. So, we will see. Now everybody has the chance. And we have, not in the moment but hopefully in a couple of weeks we will have midfielders who can play the more defensive role as well. These are the solutions we have and we think in the moment. What we do in January, I have no idea. If we can do something, I have no idea. If we want to do something, I have no idea in the moment. We just will see. For the moment we are fine. We use, how always, the boys we have. And I’m really happy. Because we speak constantly about injuries, it’s not easy for me to be happy in this press conference, but I am about the chance they have now. And you should see them in training – they can smell the chance and they step up and they want to show they are ready. That’s good. And we will see. I’m really confident that it will work out with the boys and then hopefully we can convince the rest of the world as well.