Liverpool striker Hugo Ekitike was forced off just seven minutes into the Premier League trip to Brighton to deal Arne Slot another injury blow after losing Mohamed Salah and goalkeeper Alisson this week.
Ekitike suffered what appeared to be a dead leg following a late challenge from the Brighton veteran, and Liverpool great, James Milner, inside the opening few minutes of the Premier League clash on the south coast.
Ekitike was left banging the turf in pain but was able to hobble to the sidelines. After despite a brief attempt to play on, Ekitike went down again and was replaced by Curtis Jones before heading straight down the tunnel, looking distraught.
“I think the players, the fans, we all know that there’s only eight games to go to qualify for Champions League and then every game that you have to miss is something you’re upset about,” Slot told TNT Sports after Liverpool’s 2-1 defeat.
“I think him having to go off after one or two minutes, not being able to help the team anymore with something that is just a bit of bad luck. Because it’s not like he’s out for three months, at least that’s not what I assume, but it’s bad enough not to be able to continue. That’s a big blow for him. It was in the end also a blow for us.”
The France international has been called up for the friendlies against Brazil and Colombia next week, but could be a doubt depending on the severity of the injury. Salah and Alisson have withdrawn from Egypt and Brazil’s squads, respectively, after both missing the trip to Brighton.
Salah, who was forced off late on in the 4-0 win over Galatasaray on Wednesday, following the international break, while Liverpool are hopeful that against Paris Saint-Germain.
Liverpool fell to their 10th Premier League defeat of the season and suffered another blow in their pursuit of a top-five finish. After a three-game winless run, following the defeat at Wolves and draw against struggling Tottenham, Liverpool could be leapfrogged by Chelsea into fifth later this evening.
Slot also told Match of the Day: “Brighton did what we expected, to be tight and aggressive from the start and to play the duels. This was also a duel [from Milner], there was nothing wrong with it but it hit his leg and he couldn’t continue.”