Andoni Iraola is unsure as to whether or not Liverpool will have Cody Gakpo available for the Premier League clash against Fulham on Saturday.
The Dutchman picked up an adductor issue in last week’s win over Ipswich and was left out of the Champions League fixture against Atletico Madrid on Wednesday night as a precaution.
There were a couple of minor injury scares during the 2-1 victory over Diego Simeone’s side, although the head coach clarified afterwards that Bradley Barcola were withdrawn due to cramp rather than anything more serious.
However, Iraola continues to sweat on the availability of Gakpo for the Fulham game and is hoping that the 27-year-old will be passed fit to play at the weekend.
When asked if the Dutchman will be back for Saturday, the head coach replied (via liverpoolfc.com): “I don’t know. I hope so, but I don’t know. He doesn’t have a proper injury, but he finished with niggles in both of the adductors the other day.
“We expected to have him for today, [but] it hasn’t been possible. It’s not a big thing, but the problem is we play here in two days and a half.
“I think now is a moment of recovery in these two days. Let’s see how Bradley has finished, how Cody is [and] if he can give us some minutes. If not, Rio [Ngumoha], Victor [Munoz], I think today everyone has done a big effort.
“We need to recover, we need to regroup and think because in two days and a half we play again here [against] Fulham. It’s a very important game again for us, so I hope we can have Cody with us, but I cannot guarantee it.”
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With Gakpo uncertain to be fit for Saturday, Iraola may well have been twitching rather uncomfortably last night when Barcola went to ground an hour into the game against Atletico, but thankfully the 24-year-old seemed to be merely cramping.
The new signing is still only getting up to speed on what was his first start in any fixture since his involvement for France at the World Cup. Prior to Wednesday, he’d only played 26 minutes of football in that time (when he came off the bench against Ipswich six days ago).
His fellow winger could be touch-and-go for the Fulham game at the weekend, and with another quick turnaround to facing Tottenham Hotspur in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday, Iraola’s inclination might be to err on the side of caution.
Liverpool could do with getting Gakpo back sooner rather than later, considering the excellent start he’s had to the campaign (a goal and three assists after three games), and the head coach may also be trying to manage Barcola’s minutes after not having had a pre-season.
Here’s hoping that both will get the all-clear for Saturday and the Reds will have the full attacking deck, other than the already confirmed absences of Hugo Ekitike and Federico Chiesa.
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