Jürgen Klopp Plays Down Fears of Injuries to Mohamed Salah & Virgil van Dijk
By Tom Gott
Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp has played down fears that both Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah picked up injuries during Sunday's 2-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur.
Salah, who netted the winning penalty, was withdrawn shortly before full time after appearing to aggravate the ankle injury which kept him out of the draw with Manchester United, while Van Dijk was seen leaving the dressing room with ice on his leg after the game.
However, speaking to Sky Sports after the game, Klopp admitted he was not concerned about either injury, although he was aware that Salah's knock will likely need some more treatment.
"Virgil got a dead leg, which will be fine," Klopp explained. "It's painful, but it will be fine. For Mo, it's the same ankle. It gets sore the longer the game goes, but it's not a massive issue. It will disappear one day, but at the moment, it's still a bit there.
"It had no influence on him during the game, but then the longer the game goes, the more intense it will be. If it starts again, then that's it."
While both players appear to be fine, Klopp may look to rest both in Wednesday's Carabao Cup tie with Arsenal and instead give some of his squad players a chance to impress.
In their last Carabao Cup tie with MK Dons, Klopp opted to name a side which was almost entirely made up of youngsters. He may prefer to bring in some more experience to deal with the threat of Arsenal, although the club's academy stars are still expected to play a major role in the game.
Fortunately for Liverpool, it sounds like that will be the only game they miss, with both Van Dijk and Salah expected to be ready to face Aston Villa in the Premier League on Saturday.
The hard-fought win over Spurs saw Liverpool reestablish their six-point lead at the top of the table, having seen their advantage cut to three earlier in the weekend.