Jurgen Klopp provides Joel Matip injury update after Liverpool beat Tottenham

Jurgen Klopp has confirmed Joel Matip may have picked up a serious ankle injury in Liverpool’s 3-1 victory over Tottenham.

The champions put an end to a concerning run of five Premier League games without a win to see off Spurs and move back into the top four, with Sadio Mane capitalising on a lapse in concentration from Joe Rodon to put Thursday’s heavyweight clash to bed.

Pierre-Emile Hojberg had earlier given Tottenham a glimmer of hope with a 49th-minute wonder strike after goals from Roberto Firmino and Trent Alexander-Arnold in a frantic period either side the half-time break.

Mane’s effort in the 65th minute put the game out of sight and Liverpool maintained their two-goal lead to win in the league for the first time since their 7-0 thumping of Crystal Palace on December 19 – but Matip’s injury put a slight dampener on the evening for the Reds.

‘Yes I am [delighted]. It was a great game, super intense as I guessed before the game,’ Klopp told BT Sport shortly after the final whistle.

‘We scored goals in the right moments, wonderful goals, the right people scored the goals so it was all good apart from Joel Matip.’

Asked to expand on Matip’s injury at his post-match press conference, Klopp explained: ‘Ankle ligament.’

He later told reporters that the injury looked like it may have been ‘serious’.

Matip had returned from almost a month out to face Burnley in Liverpool’s previous league match and was subsequently rested against Manchester United in the FA Cup, with Klopp reluctant to rely too heavily on the injury-prone defender.

But Klopp’s makeshift central defence of Jordan Henderson and Matip lasted just 45 minutes versus Spurs, with Nat Phillips having to replace the Cameroonian for the second half in north London.

Liverpool were already without Fabinho after the Brazil international suffered a minor muscle problem and Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez are long-term absentees with serious knee injuries.

Klopp has remained coy when pressed on the possibility of strengthening at centre-back before the January deadline but the German admitted Liverpool may need to dip into the transfer market after Matip’s injury.

‘You can imagine we think about everything [with transfers],’ he added.

‘I am not picky but we need to find the right player. We have some. Not a lot.

Source: Read Full Article