Liverpool manager Arne Slot will be without another Reds player for their looming Merseyside derby against Everton.
It has been a brutal week on Merseyside by all accounts.
Champions League dreams extinguished, a star striker stretchered off in tears and ruled out for months, and now a trip to enemy territory for one of the most emotionally charged fixtures in the English calendar.
Liverpool head into Sunday’s Merseyside derby on the back foot in every conceivable sense, and Slot has confirmed the injury problems are not going away either.
The Reds travel to Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium on Sunday afternoon for the first-ever Merseyside derby at the new ground, and the backdrop could hardly be more dramatic.
Slot’s side were eliminated from the Champions League by PSG on Tuesday night, losing 2-0 at Anfield to go out 4-0 on aggregate, leaving a top-five Premier League finish as the only prize left to fight for this season.
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Arne Slot is under scrutiny right now.
Liverpool and Everton are both competing for a coveted spot in Europe, meaning the derby is anything but a dead rubber.
A slip here could drag the former into a frantic scramble for Champions League qualification in the final weeks of the campaign.
David Moyes’ Toffees could close the gap on Liverpool in fifth to just two points if they beat them, so a defeat for Slot would seriously ramp up the pressure.
Moyes has built a resilient unit this season, and the Blues have not lost at home to Liverpool since December 2021 — a record that will give the Everton faithful enormous belief, even at a ground they have never called home before this season.
Slot confirms Joe Gomez absence for Liverpool against Everton
The injury news has done nothing to brighten the mood in the Liverpool camp.
When Slot was asked at his pre-match press conference on Friday whether Joe Gomez would be available for the derby, the Dutchman’s answer was as blunt as it gets.
The ‘special‘ defender, who has been used at right-back throughout the season in the absence of other options, will play no part at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
It compounds a miserable week that began with the sight of Ekitike being carried off the Anfield turf on a stretcher.
The 23-year-old has ruptured his Achilles tendon and faces a recovery of up to nine months, ruling him out for the rest of the season and this summer’s World Cup with France.
Ekitike had scored 17 goals for club and country this season after joining from Eintracht Frankfurt for £69 million last summer, with his injury coming as a devastating blow at the worst possible moment.
Slot did confirm that Alexander Isak has returned from his own lengthy injury absence, but may not yet be ready for a full 90 minutes, leaving Cody Gakpo and Federico Chiesa as options to lead the line in what will be a makeshift attacking setup.
Alisson also remains absent, with Giorgi Mamardashvili set to start in goal.
Sunday will also be Mohamed Salah’s final Merseyside derby, with the Egyptian confirmed as one of the players leaving Anfield at the end of the season, alongside Andy Robertson.
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The Anfield side are in pole position.