Liverpool ace midfielder Philippe Coutinho will be sidelined for up to six weeks, but Jurgen Klopp warns his club can handle the pressure.
Brazil international is expected to be out for six weeks due to ankle ligament damage, but Jurgen Klopp has insisted his team won’t use Philippe Coutinho’s injury as an excuse for failure.
Coutinho sustained ankle ligament damage in Sunday’s 2-0 win against Sunderland, and he will be sidelined for six weeks after scans confirmed surgery will be needed on Monday.
This is a huge loss for Klopp’s side as they try to cope without the Brazilian who’s been playing at a world-class level for Liverpool this campaign. His untimely injury will require him to miss six Premier League games against Manchester City and the Merseyside Derby at Goodison Park.
Klopp has warned his side will not accept failure in the absence of his No 10: “Phil Coutinho is a really good football player and if we can’t use him for the next few days or weeks then every team in the world would feel that,” Klopp speaking to the media ahead of the side’s EFL Cup quarter-final against Leeds United on Tuesday evening.
“That’s how it is but there is no excuse for anything.
“Phil, as good as he is, cannot decide games on his own even if it looks like that at times. He dribbles, he shoots and he is important but it is really a team performance that we have created.
“He’s a very important part of that but of course we can handle it. It’s not the best thing I can imagine or dream about, to show that we can play without Phil, but we have to show it and we will show it.”
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Liverpool are in a three-headed title race with leaders Chelsea and Manchester City, who are both playing great football. Although Reds have England international Daniel Sturridge at their disposal for long-term, it’s unknown what impact he’ll have on the team as he’s set to miss Tuesday’s match alongside Adam Lallana.
“Phil’s not in, Adam is close but not in, Daniel is not in; they are all quality players but we don’t look for excuses. We want to show it’s possible to play the way we play football without them, but of course it is better if they are all fit.”
“Whichever squad and line-up we use it will be really difficult because of the situation and because we don’t have a lot of possibilities to change things in the offensive line. We need to make decisions but all the decisions we make will be about winning the game.”