Frimpong Out, Bradley Back in Training

Liverpool are set to be without new signing Jeremie Frimpong for what should be a tough match away at Newcastle on Monday and a test at home to Arsenal the following week. The right back was withdrawn in the first Premier League match due to hamstring concerns raised by the medical team, which were further confirmed in ensuing days.

Conor Bradley, who has himself been sidelined with injury, has returned to training Thursday, and may be in contention for Monday’s trip to the north east — though as of Arne Slot’s pre-Newcastle press conference the Northern Irishman’s fitness is too early to call.

Joe Gomez has almost returned to fitness and may thus feature at right back for some or all of Monday’s match depending on what both men can handle. Since Gomez has just returned and has his own difficulties, Slot may have to come up with other options should Bradley be unable to handle a full match.

Speaking to the press, Slot gave more detail on the right back injury considerations:

“Conor trained for a few minutes with us today [Thursday] for the first time.

“The medical team was completely right about Jeremie to tell me that I had to take him off, because he is out until the end of the international break and that happened in the game.

“I already said immediately after the game that it had nothing to do with how he played, but we felt he had an issue with his hamstring. And with ‘we’ I don’t mean me, but the medical staff. And they were completely right.

“So, a good call to take him off, otherwise he would have maybe been out for longer. And we expect to have him back after the international break.”

Despite the early test, Slot is not concerned about injury issues for right back for the Reds:

“No [concerns], Jeremie has a very positive injury record. Conor has been out once or twice last season. These things happen in a season.

“We only have at the moment two injuries, unfortunately it is two for the same position. But the good thing is some others can play in that position as well. Wata [Endō] played in that position for a few minutes, Dominik Szoboszlai already played in that position.

“So, there are other options we can explore. Joe Gomez is definitely one of them, but for him to play already 20 minutes, that was already quite a lot. I wouldn’t say he had a setback but he wasn’t able to train three days in a row completely with the team.

“Which is completely normal if you’re out for so long and all of a sudden the manager needs you for 20 minutes. But he is training with the team, so let’s see where he is on Monday, if he can be involved in the team or if he can even start.

“But there are other options we have as well in this position. It’s just you cannot prepare for two injuries in one position, it would be stupid for us to have three full-backs or five left-backs.

“Although we have three left-backs at the moment! So we’re unlucky that the right full-backs are injured.”