Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has not ruled out returns for Trent Alexander-Arnold and Diogo Jota against Atalanta in the Europa League.
Alexander-Arnold has not played for the Reds since February, when he was withdrawn after 45 minutes of the 3-1 win over Burnley in February, while Jota hasn’t seen action after picking up a knee injury the following week at Brentford.
Jurgen Klopp has also been without first choice goalkeeper Alisson for two months, weakening Liverpool’s arsenal in what has been a crucial period of fixtures.
They remain in the hunt for a second Premier League title in four years though, and remain favourites to win the Europa League. First, they must overcome a tricky-looking quarter-final tie against Atalanta – one that Klopp failed to rule Alexander-Arnold and Jota out of after their recent returns to training.
“Obviously we didn’t rush it with them. Trent and Jota have been training together a lot for a couple of weeks,” the German told his pre-match press conference. “They did a lot of training but they were doing very well yesterday.
“Stefan [Bajcetic] is different because he has been out for a little longer but now he is training for longer as well. I think after the long spell out, we might give him a game in the U21s and see how we go with that.
“But that won’t be the case with the other three, Alisson as well. We will see how they go but they are back in training and we have to see how we use them. Yes, we need them back but we need them in the best possible shape and we need them in rhythm.
“It’s always a challenge to reintegrate them but they are quality players so they will manage it. We will see over the next days and weeks but as for tomorrow, there’s no decision yet.”
Klopp may ultimately decide against risking the duo in midweek, with an important Premier League home game coming up against Crystal Palace on Sunday. Liverpool are no longer in control of their own destiny – barring a dramatic goal difference overhaul – with dropped points against Manchester United last weekend handing Arsenal top spot heading into the final weeks of the campaign.
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