Things went from bad to worse for Jurgen Klopp last weekend and now Liverpool must battle an injury crisis as games pile up over the coming weeks.
Klopp has an exhausted roster to pick from ahead of a Champions League clash against Rangers that will be played out in a fiery Ibrox atmosphere.
Klopp must make some tough selection decisions ahead of a tough week of play
The Liverpool boss will also pray for no more injuries ahead of a crunch Premier League fight with Man City at Anfield on Sunday.
It has been a disappointing start for the Reds this season with just ten points from eight league games, putting them well behind 10th in the Premier League. Not the start they had in mind to win the title in 2020 before they came minutes from winning again last season.
A defeat certainly means any title fight is over before it has even started, although Klopp thinks it already has.
The Champions League was a little better, Liverpool won two of their first three games, but a 4-1 humiliation for Napoli was worrying.
Now they are going to Rangers with Luis Diaz sidelined until after the World Cup, while Trent Alexander-Arnold and Joel Matip will be out for about two weeks.
Alexander-Arnold received an ankle pat after a challenge from Gabriel Martinelli in the 3-2 loss to Arsenal, who were eliminated at half-time.
Darwin Nunez could be shifted left in new look lineup
Klopp was gloomy about the likely outcome for the right-back, but he will be back sooner than expected.
Matip came out in the second half with a calf problem against the Gunners and will miss at least the next two games.
There was good news, however, as Andy Robertson is back in training after a month-long absence and could return against Rangers.
Liverpool’s injury problems are mounting and Konate is likely to start
Ibrahima Konate, who has not started a game this season, is likely to partner Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez at right-back.
Further down the field we can see Klopp continue his formation change from the familiar 4-3-3 to a 4-2-3-1.
He first tried it in the Champions League win over Rangers at Anfield and used it again against Arsenal.
When asked about the change, Klopp said: “We’ve had to change things up a bit and this is what we’ve done. We need to see how it plays out in terms of formation.”
Diaz will be out until after the World Cup
Two deeper midfielders are used in this system and allow the Reds boss to manage their exhausted squad in this position.
Naby Keita and Arthur Melo are out of action for long periods of time, leaving Klopp with few options other than Jordan Henderson, Thiago and Fabinho.
Henderson is not in the best shape, so the Spaniard and Brazilian are likely to get their chance.
Diaz’s injury would allow Darwin Nunez to take the position on the left. Although primarily a centre-forward, he sometimes played on the left side for Benfica.
Diogo Jota will then come in and play a central role behind Roberto Firmino, who is Liverpool’s top scorer this season, and Mohamed Salah will then complete the XI.
How Liverpool could play against Rangers on Wednesday
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