Liverpool are sweating over injury concerns involving Alexander Isak, Cody Gakpo and Jeremy Jacquet ahead of a crucial period under Andoni Iraola.
Providing the latest injury update on Isak and Gakpo, Iraola said: “I think Alex Isak and Cody Gakpo both have had to leave the national teams with injuries.
“Now it’s a matter of if they are going to recover in time to help us in the next game or not. But right now they are both injured.”
The Reds face nine games before the November international break, starting with Manchester City this weekend, followed by LASK, Brentford, Villarreal, Brighton, Chelsea, Arsenal, Fenerbahce and Crystal Palace.
At least some of Liverpool’s international contingent avoided further strain during the break, with Ronald Araujo rested for Uruguay’s 6-1 win over India and Trey Nyoni remaining an unused substitute for England U21s.
Milos Kerkez also received an early release after suspension, while Dominik Szoboszlai featured four times for Hungary over the course of the international break.
And with injuries already becoming a concern for Iraola’s first team, Liverpool have also been managing the fitness of one of their most promising young players.
Liverpool U21s head coach Rob Page has provided an update on Jayden Danns after the striker missed Tuesday’s 1-0 defeat to Doncaster.
Danns has struggled with injuries since breaking into the first team during Jurgen Klopp’s final season. He has made just five senior appearances since then and also saw a proposed loan move to Sunderland collapse due to a back injury.
The 20-year-old has made five appearances for the U21s this season, but Page opted not to risk him against Doncaster after he felt some discomfort in training last week.
Thankfully, Page has confirmed that Jayden Danns is fit and has continued training, with Liverpool simply deciding there was little reason to take any unnecessary risks with the youngster.
“He pulled out of training last week, he just felt something and wasn’t quite comfortable,” Rob Page said. “We’re not going to take any chances, there’s no need at all.
“He’s trained. He’s been training but we didn’t think it was a risk we wanted to take. He’s fit, he’s training and we thought it was better for him to have two training days than to come and have half an hour, 45 minutes in this game.”
That will come as welcome news for Liverpool given the injury problems Danns has already had to contend with during the early stages of his career.
Rather than another setback, his absence against Doncaster appears to have been little more than Liverpool taking extra precautions with a player they will be particularly keen to manage carefully.
The same caution may be required elsewhere over the coming days, with Iraola now waiting to discover whether Isak, Gakpo and Jacquet will be available when Liverpool return to Premier League action against Manchester City.
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