Liverpool head coach Arne Slot has provided more detail on the injury that ruled Federico Chiesa out of Wednesday's Champions League win over Marseille.
The Italy international was one of 20 players who made the journey to France for the league-phase clash, which the Reds won 3-0 to boost their chances of qualifying directly for the last 16.
Chiesa was due to be among the replacements for the showdown with Roberto De Zerbi's men, acting as Mohamed Salah's understudy following the Egyptian's return from AFCON.
However, the former Juventus man was a last-minute absentee from the squad, and it was subsequently believed that he had sustained an injury in the warm-up at the Orange Velodrome.
Speaking to the media in his post-game press conference, Slot revealed that Chiesa had in fact suffered his issue during Tuesday's open training session, but he does not expect the attacker to be sidelined for long.
Arne Slot delivers Federico Chiesa injury update after Liverpool victory
"Two or three minutes after you guys left yesterday, he stepped out of the training session," Slot said. "We took him with us because we don't expect it to be a long-term injury.
"Because we stay here tonight, we are here a bit longer. We thought it was good for him to have his treatment over here and we were hoping that maybe he would have been fit in time. But he wasn't. He tried in the warm-up and he wasn't able to play. That's why he wasn't on the bench."
It remains to be seen whether Chiesa is fit for Saturday's Premier League showdown with Bournemouth, but his latest niggle is yet another setback to a Liverpool career that has never got going.
The 28-year-old was viewed as the bargain of the 2024 summer transfer window when he joined for just £10.3m from Juventus, but he has only managed four goals and five assists in 36 games for the Reds due to injury.
Of the 22 appearances Chiesa has made this season, only four have come from the first whistle, and the Italian has also started just two Premier League games since his arrival in England.
Could Federico Chiesa leave Liverpool in January?
Slot's apparent lack of trust in Chiesa has inevitably led to speculation about a possible January exit, and a return to Serie A with Juventus has been strongly mooted.
However, the 28-year-old would have also been a backup to Kenan Yildiz in Turin, and Juve could not justify keeping him on his £150,000-a-week wage while Yildiz earns £50,000.
As a result, Chiesa's prospective return to Juventus reportedly stalled earlier this week following a 'cold weekend', while Liverpool's demands also proved prohibitive.
Chiesa therefore looks likely to stay put at the time of writing, but the 28-year-old realistically must depart this month to give himself the best possible chance of going to the 2026 World Cup.
Italy face Northern Ireland in their playoff semi-final on March 26 for the right to meet Wales or Bosnia-Herzegovina in the final, but Chiesa has not been called up for his country since Euro 2024.