Jurgen Klopp has played down fears about the fitness of midfielder Fabinho after the Liverpool man was forced off injured in the first half of Tuesday’s 2-1 win over Aston Villa.
The Brazil international was not given a rest for the game, unlike Thiago or Mohamed Salah.
But looked off the pace before pulling up with what appeared to be a hamstring injury inside half an hour.
He had to be replaced by Jordan Henderson, and now Fabinho’s involvement in Saturday’s FA Cup final against Chelsea is up in the air.
While further tests will need to be done to determine the severity of the injury.
Klopp revealed after the game that the 28-year-old doesn’t think his issue is anything too serious.
Jurgen Klopp said:
“He felt a muscle, not too much.
“He’s pretty positive, but I’m not sure what I can make of that. We will see.
“You have to make the decisions before the game, nobody had any issues, and you have to play somebody.”
Klopp confirmed that left-back Andy Robertson’s omission from the matchday squad was purely down to rest.
However, he admitted losing Fabinho at such a crucial point of the season could be a ‘big blow’.
The Reds remain in the hunt for the Premier League title, likely needing maximum points from their remaining two games against Southampton and Wolves if they have any hope of toppling Manchester City at the top of the table.
On top of that, Liverpool also has the small matter of the final against Real Madrid on May 28 to look forward to.
And Klopp will be sweating over Fabinho’s involvement until the tests come back.
In the case of the Champions League final, the Liverpool player’s fitness will play a huge factor in the match.
Since winning the LaLiga and the UCL tie against Man City, Carlo Ancelotti has been rotating his squad.
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