Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool need just a point against Eredivisie side Ajax in Amsterdam on Wednesday evening to reach the knockout stages of this season’s Champions League.....READ THE FULL ARTICLE>>>
Thiago Alcantara did not train with Liverpool’s first-team squad on Tuesday ahead of their game against Ajax on Wednesday evening.
Jurgen Klopp’s side, who defeated Rangers 7-1 at Ibrox in their last Champions League outing, need to avoid defeat in Amsterdam to reach the knockout stages. If they fail to do that, a point against Group A leaders Napoli at Anfield next Tuesday will also be enough.
Thiago missed Liverpool’s 1-0 Premier League defeat to Nottingham Forest at the City Ground on Saturday afternoon with an ear infection and it appears the complaint is still causing him some discomfort. However, there was some positive news with three other injury-stricken starts returning to training.
Darwin Nunez is back after tweaking his hamstring in last week’s 1-0 win against West Ham at Anfield, and Ibrahima Konate also appears to be fit again following his muscle injury. The French defender hasn’t played since the win against Rangers two weeks ago.
Another huge boost for Klopp is the return of Naby Keita, who hasn’t played since the 3-1 win against Manchester City in the Community Shield in July because of a hamstring injury. His return will be a relief due to Liverpool’s lack of depth in central midfield.
Remarkably, 19 Liverpool players have missed at least one game this season because of a fitness issue. The likes of Luis Diaz (knee), Joel Matip (calf), Arthur Melo (muscle) and Diogo Jota (calf) will not be involved against Ajax due to their respective injuries.
Liverpool’s injury woes have hampered their progress in the Premier League this season. They’ve won just four of their 11 fixtures to sit eighth in the table, 12 points behind leaders Arsenal. They’re also 10 points behind title favourites Manchester City.
Despite Liverpool’s indifferent Premier League form, Ajax manager Alfred Schreuder doesn’t believe they will vulnerable on Wednesday evening. “No, I don’t think so,” he said when asked in his pre-match press conference on Tuesday afternoon.
“They are still a top team, we saw that after their reaction [following the 4-1 defeat to Napoli] to win in the Champions League and if you see the last few games against Rangers and then Manchester City, they showed top form and quality.
“Yes, they lost versus Nottingham Forest, but they could also have won by four or five. Obviously we watched their game with Nottingham Forest but they won against City the week before, who are not the least of clubs. This game against Nottingham, they could have won 6-1 but just didn’t have luck on their side.”
Ajax need to beat Liverpool to stand any chance of progressing, as they are six points behind them with two games to play. They will at least want to finish third in Group A, which will see them move into the Europa League. They are three points ahead of Rangers.
Schreuder added: “In the end it’s all about the points, it’s the Champions League, it’s sold out so this is what we want, we know to show a threat with aggression. We need to keep our backs straight and run into the spaces. That is our aggressiveness.”
