Curtis Jones is in line to start while Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain should also get the nod when Liverpool take on Brentford in the Premier League.
Liverpool will be aiming to get back to winning ways and close the gap to the top two when they play hosts to Brentford at Anfield in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon.
Having not picked up a victory in their previous three league games, the Reds have lost some ground in the title race and will be eager to get things back on track at the earliest. But they will have to do so without the help of their key forwards Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane, who are away on international duty at the AFCON, along with midfielder Naby Keita.
Liverpool vs Brentford Preview: Probable Lineups, Prediction, Tactics, Team News & Key Stats
Meanwhile, Nathaniel Phillips, Harvey Elliott and Thiago Alcantara are out with injuries. Divock Origi is also sidelined with a fitness problem, although Jurgen Klopp confirmed that the Belgian was close to returning. Speaking in his pre-match press conference, the German said: “Yesterday he was outside running and looked really good, so I think he will not be too far away.”
Klopp also provided an update on the trio of Virgil van Dijk, Andrew Robertson and James Milner, who had picked up minor knocks against Arsenal earlier in the week, saying: “We got knocks last night: Robbo got a knock, Virg got a knock, Millie got a knock, but last night directly after the game, the medical department told me all will be fine, but there is a night between then and now so we will see that.”
With van Dijk and Robertson available, they are expected to retain their spots in the starting XI, forming the Liverpool defence with Trent Alexander-Arnold and Joel Matip. The backline will guard Alisson Becker between the sticks as usual and hope to fare better than the last time they came up against Brentford.
Fabinho is a certainty to feature at the base of the three-man midfield unit for the Reds. Captain Jordan Henderson will once again partner him. But there could be one change in the centre of the park as Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is likely to get the nod ahead of Milner on Sunday.
With no Salah and Mane, Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino become automatic starters in the frontline for Liverpool. The duo will have to shoulder added responsibility in the absence of the Reds’ marquee attackers. Takumi Minamino, who missed a sitter against Arsenal in midweek, could drop out of the lineup, making way for Curtis Jones, who looked sharp in his cameo against the Gunners.
Liverpool Predicted XI: Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Matip, van Dijk, Robertson, Henderson, Fabinho, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Jota, Firmino, Jones.
