Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp revealed on Friday that Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was injured [official site].
The Reds midfielder will miss the remainder of the pre-season preparations and could be sidelined for approximately two months [The Times], after Klopp said that Oxlade-Chamberlain’s knock was similar to that of Jordan Henderson’s.
He started only 17 Premier League games for Liverpool last season and is seems like he is progressively becoming a less important player for the German manager.
Winning the title is hard, but defending it is even tougher and Klopp can’t rely on injury-prone players, even if they’re squad players.
And it makes you wonder whether the club could now get serious about signing Thiago Alcantara.
This one has rumbled on for months and Liverpool are reportedly still refusing to pay £27 million for the Bayern Munich midfielder [Bild].
But with Oxlade-Chamberlain facing an extended period on the sidelines, and Gini Wijnaldum out of contract next summer, you could argue now is the time for the Anfield club to bite the bullet and just pay what Bayern want.
Thiago is a similar midfield player to Oxlade-Chamberlain and Wijnaldum, and although he’s 29, he still has enough years left to be a big, big asset for Liverpool.
If Wijnaldum had just signed a three-year extension, and Oxlade-Chamberlain had a blemish-free injury record, then the situation would be different and Director of Football Edwards could continue this staring competition with Bayern.
But the situation is much more precarious and if Thiago winds up elsewhere – like Manchester United for example – and dazzles in the Premier League, then there’ll be no sympathy for Liverpool for not pulling the trigger at the opportune time.
It’s now.
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