Liverpool certainly made a statement earlier tonight- Wow! In thrashing Sparta Praha 6-1 on Thursday night, the Reds destroyed their Czech foes 11-2 in the Europa League tie. Now comes a rivalry clash with Manchester United, and the FA Cup tie could see Ibrahima Konate (thigh) come back into the mix.
The defender could feature on St. Patrick’s Day, and that would shorten the Merseyside club’s injury list by one.
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However, it is the next match, after the international break, when we really should see the LFC injuries list shorten substantially. More than just Konate.
Trent Alexander-Arnold (knee), Curtis Jones (ankle), Ryan Gravenberch (also an ankle) and Stefan Bajcetic (abductor) could all be back available for selection again when the Reds host Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday March 31.
Then, a couple weeks later on April 14, when Liverpool hosts Crystal Palace, we could see Alisson (thigh) and Diogo Jota (knee) potentially match fit enough to feature again.
Finally, Thiago and Joel Matip are of course done for the season. In other news, Michael Edwards is back at the Merseyside club, and his new role is CEO of Football. Former Liverpool defender Glen Johnson gave his take on the appointment.
“Yeah, well, off the top of my head, I can’t think of anyone behind the scenes better than Eddie,” Johnson said to Squawka.
“His knowledge of the game and how he works things out and builds the team around him is very, very important. And obviously, when it comes to signings, you see how good the work is, but there’s a lot of effort that goes in it behind the scenes that we don’t see.
“The guy’s worked extremely hard. So to have him back I think is a huge, huge bonus.”
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to Ravens Wire, part of the USA Today SMG’s NFL Wire Network. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune and the Washington Times. You can follow him on Twitter.