Liverpool face Crystal Palace next in the Premier League at Selhurst Park as they look to bounce back from consecutive defeats against Arsenal in the league and Fenerbahce in the Champions League.
The Reds will be eager to put that result behind them after a controversial moment dominated the post-match discussion. Alexander Isak was denied a penalty after Jurrien Timber appeared to pull his shirt while both players attempted to reach a cross.
Andoni Iraola was adamant that Liverpool should have been awarded a spot-kick and insisted his players would “definitely” go to ground in similar circumstances in the future.
The Liverpool boss will now turn his attention to the trip to Palace, who have struggled recently after suffering three consecutive Premier League defeats. However, the Reds cannot afford to underestimate the Eagles, who have proved difficult opponents on home soil in the past.
Liverpool also have several injury concerns to manage following their midweek defeat to Fenerbahce, but have received a significant boost ahead of Sunday’s fixture.
Jeremie Frimpong has endured a difficult start to life at Anfield, with Iraola previously ruling him out for more than a month after he picked up an injury against Brentford on October 17.
“Frimpong has a new muscle injury. It’s difficult to predict [when he will return],” said Iraola. “We will have to wait until he recovers but it is going to be difficult before the break. We will try, but it is going to be difficult to have him.”
According to the Daily Mail, the Netherlands international is now all-but fit and could feature this weekend if required. But Liverpool have decided against rushing him back, given his recent injury problems.
The Reds were recently reminded of the risks of bringing players back too quickly when Dominik Szoboszlai suffered another setback shortly after making his first start following an injury lay-off, ruling him out for a further fortnight.
Frimpong missed just seven games through injury during his four years at Bayer Leverkusen, but has already been sidelined for almost 30 matches since joining Liverpool. He has missed Liverpool’s last five matches in all competitions.
With most of his absences related to hamstring problems, the club are keen to manage his recovery carefully. He is therefore expected to use the November international break to continue building his fitness rather than risk an early return.
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