A Joel Matip injury is less than ideal for Liverpool, it has to be said.
The Telegraph has reported in recent hours that the former Schalke centre-back has missed training at Kirkby this afternoon ahead of the Reds’ visit of Crystal Palace on Monday night.
At the moment, Matip is looking like the ninth Liverpool player who could be absent against the Eagles.
Among the other eight is Ibrahima Konate, another of Jurgen Klopp’s central defenders.
And with that in mind, it looks very probable that a certain Nat Phillips is set to be recalled to the squad.
Phillips hasn’t made a Premier League squad since December, with the Bolton-born powerhouse failing to kick a ball in this competition last season.
That’s because Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez, Matip and Konate represented ridiculous depth for this position, much to the detriment of the Englishman’s playing time under Klopp.
However, the Liverpool manager now only has Van Dijk and Gomez available at central defence against Patrick Vieira’s side, meaning that Phillips – who wants out of Merseyside – is almost certainly going to make the bench at a bare minimum.
Not to jinx anything but the way that the cards are falling for the Reds right now, it wouldn’t be a massive surprise if Van Dijk or Gomez were to pick up a knock, allowing Phillips to make a long-awaited Premier League return.
Remember, this is a player who helped Klopp’s side qualify for the Champions League in 2021, a competition they very nearly won a few months ago.
The German manager labelled him ‘absolutely insane‘ toward the end of the 2020-21 campaign and even if this injury crisis leads to him playing competitive games again, Liverpool are in safe hands.
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