Diogo Jota and Federico Chiesa could both return from injury against Fulham this weekend as Liverpool looks to further cement its position in the Premier League title race.
Arne Slot confirmed in his pre-match press conference that both players are nearing a return. "I think they are [available this weekend]," the Liverpool head coach said.
"We have one more training session to go. Federico missed a lot for a long time; he was ill last week so we have to see how he is. Maybe Diogo is in the squad; maybe Federico as well but that depends on the numbers and how he's recovered from his illness."
Liverpool is still set to be without Ibrahima Konate and Conor Bradley but Kostas Tsimikas took a step forward when he was spotted training on the grass on his own yesterday. Alexis Mac Allister is suspended having picked up five cautions.
Alisson Becker made his comeback from injury in the 1-0 win over Girona in the Champions League. The Brazilian performed well on that occasion and will remain in the starting XI here.
KIRKBY, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 12: (THE SUN OUT, THE SUN ON SUNDAY OUT) Federico Chiesa and Diogo Jota of Liverpool during a training session at AXA Training Centre on December 12, 2024 in Kirkby, England. (Photo by Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
"Hopefully the amount of time he needed, and we thought he needed, to get him back to his best possible level, also helped us for the long term," Slot said. "It's not just that he's there for the next few weeks, but it's something that has to be shown in the upcoming weeks and months that he can stay available.
"He worked really hard with our performance and medical staff to get where he is now, and hopefully he doesn't get the same amount of work every game he plays. But if he does, he's shown he's able to cope in a really good way for us."
Liverpool.com says: The Reds' injury list is easing at the ideal time. This portion of the season is always filled with matches and the Southampton game in the Carabao Cup next Wednesday should offer the perfect opportunity to rotate. In that match, we should see a good amount of Harvey Elliott, Wataru Endo and probably Jota and Chiesa.