Liverpool lacks an attacking player claims Carragher
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp believes can he replace Fabinho in four different ways after the holding midfielder was ruled out until the New Year with injury. The Brazilian sustained ankle ligament damage during the Reds’ 1-1 draw with Napoli in midweek and will miss the busiest period of the season.
Starting today against Brighton, Liverpool play 11 games in 33 days with that number most likely rising to 12 if they reach the FIFA Club World Cup final.
Fabinho has been a mainstay in Klopp’s side this season, starting 11 of 13 Premier League games at the base of midfield.
Klopp admitted it is “bad news” that he will be without the bandy-legged destroyer heading into the festive fixture schedule but believes there are four back-up options to tackle the problem.
“Hendo (Jordan Henderson) played the position. Gini (Georginio Wijnaldum) played the position already, Adam Lallana played the position,” Klopp said, before suggesting a change of tactics could also compensate for Fabinho’s absence.
Jurgen Klopp gives four Fabinho injury solutions as Liverpool boss reflects on ‘bad news' (Image: Getty)
“We can change system, we can do different things. How I said, losing a player with the quality of Fabinho is big, it’s massive.
“But, how I said, we are not the only team in the Premier League with injuries.
“You want to push that moment as far as possible through the end of the year because in this period if you are two weeks out you miss six games, that's how it is.
“That's now the case and we can’t change that anymore and we have to find a solution. We will find a solution. Will it be exactly like Fabinho? Of course not, because nobody is like the other one.
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“But it will be good. Then we have to play football and have to win football games again. That's it.”
Klopp was pressed on whether Fabinho’s replacement will be given a run of games to nail down the position but the German tactician was tentative to give a definitive answer.
“I cannot make these decisions,” he said. “We have to see.
"How I said, the three players I mentioned already played the position in plenty of games, so that's not a problem.
Liverpool midfielder Fabinho suffered ankle ligament damage against Napoli (Image: Getty)