15th December, 2019
Dejan Lovren has been ruled out of Liverpool’s trip to the Club World Cup, but Georginio Wijnaldum will travel with the Reds squad for the tournament in Qatar.
Croatian defender Lovren will miss out as a result of the hamstring problem he suffered during Tuesday’s Champions League victory in Salzburg.
But Dutch midfielder Wijnaldum, who appeared to suffer a hamstring injury in the Premier League leaders’ 2-0 win over Watford on Saturday, was named among the 20-man party which flew out on Sunday.
Jurgen Klopp’s side enters the Club World Cup at the semi-final stage on Wednesday, with Mexican side Monterrey their opponents in Doha.
A statement on Liverpool’s official website confirmed Lovren’s omission and Wijnaldum’s inclusion.
Resources are already stretched thinly with a youth team set to play a League Cup quarter-final at Aston Villa on Tuesday, and Fabinho (ankle) and Joel Matip (knee) ruled out of games in the Middle East.
“With the Gini injury, Dejan three or four days ago, our squad is not getting bigger. That is not cool,” Klopp said.
“But that is the same problem if we go to Aston Villa in the Carabao Cup quarter-final.”
Speaking before the squad was named, Klopp added on Wijnaldum’s injury: “It is a muscle thing and you never want that for a player. In these moments it immediately makes it more difficult.”
The Dutchman’s injury was the only cloud on a day when Mohamed Salah took his tally to four goals in his last three matches, and 13 for the season, with a brilliant double against Watford.