Arne Slot has issued an update on the injury which forced Hugo Ekitike out of Liverpool’s defeat at Brighton in the first few minutes at the Amex Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
The Reds striker was in tears as he left the pitch shortly after kick-off, with some of the home supporters jeering him as he made his way towards the tunnel, and it depleted our attacking options even further with Mo Salah absent for today’s fixture.
However, the LFC head coach has downplayed fears over a serious injury to the 23-year-old, whose body blow (following a collision with James Milner) would appear to be much less severe than it first seemed.
Slot clarified in his post-match press conference (via Sky Sports): “Hugo could play tomorrow if he had to. It was a dead leg. It was a collision that led to him going off. It was not helpful.”
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Ekitike’s cutting edge was badly missed by Liverpool as they sunk to yet another insipid defeat in which they tamely surrendered to an opponent who displayed far more intensity and intent than the Reds.
Thankfully, it seems as though the Frenchman won’t be sidelined for any great length of time and – providing he comes through the international window without being struck down – should be available for the FA Cup quarter-final against Manchester City on 4 April.
The 23-year-old has had to shoulder the centre-forward burden almost uninterrupted for the past three months after the broken leg suffered by Alexander Isak, and although the latter is expected to be back in early April, he’ll naturally take time to get back up to full speed.
We can breathe a sigh of relief that Ekitike hasn’t sustained a major injury concern – the best version of him will be needed if Liverpool are to somehow salvage something positive from this ongoing nightmare of a season.
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