Mo Salah and Andy Robertson out for Premier League return – Worries for Klopp

The international break curse strikes Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp once again. This time duo Mohamed Salah and Andy Robertson are out of commission for Saturday’s trip to Crystal Palace.

When Liverpool travel to Selhurst Park in search of their 13th game without defeat, they do so without the services of left-back Andrew and right-winger Mohamed. The two have reportedly not been able to recover from ankle injuries sustained while on international duty.

For now, it is just said the pair are out and are currently unavailable for selection come Saturday. It has not been confirmed whether they will be out for a longer period going beyond this weekend’s difficult away clash. In return, this is a worry for the club not to have a timeline.

"Mohamed Salah and Andrew Robertson are set to miss Liverpool’s game at Crystal Palace on Saturday after failing to recover from ankle injuries. (via: Sky Sports)"

Hopefully, for the manager Klopp, the layoff is a minor stretch and they are both available for what has to be their most important Champions League fixture to date. They entertain Napoli at Anfield on Wednesday night.

An important match among first and second-placed, to decide first and second place. If the Reds takes all the spoils they will confidently be qualifying for the knockout stages of the UCL. This is how important it is that the two do not miss out past the weekend.

How much should Jurgen Klopp worry?

Klopp already has the likes of Joel Matip out, with Joe Gomes being assessed and monitored after he returned home early from international break. In the early parts, captain Jordan Henderson did not travel with the Three Lions due to illness but has since joined up with the squad.

He should be as fit as a fiddle. Van Dijk’s withdrawal was due to personal reasons, so thankfully for Klopp, he will be available. For Gomes, on the other hand, it’s a huge worry. He encountered a bad knock to the knee.

"Joe Gomez out of England squad after picking up knee injury in training following collision with Kieran Trippier. Jordan Henderson out with illness (via: Paul Joyce)"

This does call for concern as we hit the home stretch of November, as well as the end of the year. Once we get into December, Klopp will be feeling every loss in the squad. He needs his team to stay fit during this time.

At the top end of the pitch, he has little to grieve about. With Salah out, another comes in, in Xherdan Shaqiri. He will probably move to the bench, while Origi will get the nod to start. Naby Keita, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, and Adam Lallana have proven to be worthy replacements if any of the starting 11 are unfit.

Klopp needs only to ponder over problems at the back. But he can proudly say that for the eight games his first-choice goalkeeper was missing, he had more than the adequate cover for the Brazilian Alisson, with second choice Adrian stepping in.

Milner has the goods to do the job in Robbo’s absence. He will be looked at over Gomes, as Klopp prefers Milner over the centre back in the full back position. Crystal Palace is a difficult test, so thinking cap on for Klopp.