Liverpool could be forced to change their January transfer plans with Jurgen Klopp fearing defender Joel Matip could miss months with a knee injury. Matip hobbled off with what seemed a painful issue during the Reds’ thrilling 4-3 victory over Fulham.
The Cameroonian is one of just four recognised senior centre-backs at Anfield and has a contract that expires at the end of the season. He is widely expected to depart, with Liverpool likely to enter the market for a new defender in the summer.
However, the Merseysiders might now choose to bring forward that plan with Matip expected to be out for some time. Virgil van Dijk, Ibrahima Konate and Joe Gomez are the Klopp’s other options at centre-back, while youngster Jarell Quansah has impressed in a breakthrough campaign.
A summer midfielder overhaul that totalled £150m means that money could be tight in January. But Klopp might see sense in a deal for a new defender instead of plotting a move at the end of the season.
“When the doctor comes in and says, ‘It doesn’t look great’, [you worry] but we have to wait for the scans and the scan isn’t here yet,” Klopp said, speaking ahead of Liverpool’s visit to Sheffield United.
“So you can imagine it doesn’t look great. It is never good news [when the doctor gives that assessment].
“I’ve never had that in all my years where someone says ‘oh my God, it’s [the initial diagnosis on an injury] completely wrong, there’s nothing wrong, he can play tomorrow. It doesn’t happen.”
Meanwhile, Klopp joked that he has had to bin his pre-match analysis of Sheffield United after Wednesday’s opponents sacked manager Paul Heckingbottom after one win in 14 matches. Former boss Chris Wilder has returned to Bramall Lane.
“First thing is we can probably bin our analysis,” Klopp joked. “I was sitting yesterday in the office and somebody told me it might happen but I watched it anyway. We will see.
“We have to focus on ourselves. I don’t think he will now change too much. What can he change in that short period? We don’t have to think too much about it. We really should just prepare for a football game.
“We play teams with five at the back, 5-3-2 and 5-4-1, quite frequently, to be honest. We have to make sure we give them a proper job to think about.
“I understand it’s always like that – a new manager coming in and now we start getting confused; we shouldn’t. Actually, we can play in different ways and as much I am happy for Chris that he’s back in a job there at his club, if he thinks about us then it must be, ‘Oh my God, they come from everywhere.’
“That’s pretty much the thing, but the game will be played tomorrow, not today in the press conference.
Liverpool poised for referee showdown as Haaland treatment fails to mirror Van Dijk saga
Manchester City were held to a 3-3 draw at the Etihad Stadium by Tottenham on Sunday.
Liverpool could be poised for a showdown with referee chiefs after Erling Haaland escaped punishment following his outburst during Manchester City’s 3-3 draw with Tottenham on Sunday. Spurs ended their three-game losing streak as Dejan Kulusevski popped up with a 94th-minute equaliser at the Etihad Stadium.
The Citizens played out an epic contest against Spurs, with Son Heung-min giving the visitors the lead early on before turning the ball into his own net moments later. Phil Foden finished a fine move to put the hosts ahead for the first time in the match just after the half-hour mark, before Giovani Lo Celso pulled Tottenham level with 20 minutes remaining.
Jack Grealish nudged City into the lead for the second time, before Kulusevski headed in during stoppage time. But there was still time for controversy after referee Simon Hooper later halted the game for a Citizens free-kick, despite the fact Haaland had played Grealish through on goal.
Haaland proceeded to scream in Hooper’s face as a whole host of furious City players surrounded the match official. And then later in the evening, the Norway striker wrote “wtf” on X (formerly Twitter) after a video of the incident had been shared.
On Monday, the FA decided to charge City as they released a statement that read: “Manchester City have been charged with a breach of FA Rule E20.1 after their players surrounded the match official during the Premier League fixture against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday 3 December 2023. It’s alleged that, during the 94th minute of the fixture, the club failed to ensure their players do not behave in a way which is improper.”
But, according to the BBC, Haaland is not facing an individual punishment as the FA will not be handing out any further charges.
In August, Virgil van Dijk was shown a straight red card during the first half of Liverpool’s 2-1 victory at Newcastle following a foul on Alexander Isak. The Netherlands defender protested the decision to referee John Brook and apparently went overboard as the FA slapped him with a £100,000 fine and an extra one-game ban on top of his initial one-game ban because he “acted in an improper manner and used abusive and insulting words towards a match official.”
But the same sanction has not been handed down to Haaland. The ex-Borussia Dortmund ace may not have sworn at Hooper, but he certainly directed a barrage of aggression towards the official. And he used an acronym that included a swear word on social media. So Liverpool may now be asking referee chiefs where the consistency is and why Haaland is not facing the same punishment as Van Dijk.
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