Liverpool handed timely injury boost as Slot’s squad are put through their paces in Hong Kong | OneFootball

Liverpool fans appear to have been handed encouraging news on the injury front from the Reds’ base in Hong Kong.

Arne Slot’s squad trained at Kai Tak Sports Park today, the venue at which they’ll take on AC Milan in a pre-season friendly on Saturday before venturing northeastward to Japan.

LFC’s official website published photos from the session in the Far East as the players were put through their paces, and the sight of one man in particular will have been particularly pleasing.

Mac Allister seen in Liverpool training as he steps up recovery

A couple of images showed Alexis Mac Allister out on the grass and undergoing some ball work, although he appeared to be training away from the Liverpool squad as he steps up his recovery from a niggling injury which dates back to the tail end of last season.

For that reason, the Argentine midfielder hasn’t been involved in either of our two friendlies so far this month against Preston and Stoke, but the sight of him involved in the session today raises hope that he might feature for some of the match against AC Milan at the weekend.

If that fixture comes too soon for him, his comeback could occur against Yokohama F. Marinos four days later.

Image via Liverpool FC

Liverpool will need Mac Allister fit and firing when the season begins

Mac Allister missed the final two matches of our triumphant Premier League campaign and also sat out his country’s World Cup qualifiers in June, but thankfully he appears to be on track to recover in time for the start of Liverpool’s competive action next month.

He appears to be nursing his way back to fitness rather than rushing his return, which is no harm given how much football he’s played over the past year – only three Reds players racked up more than his 3,569 minutes of game-time for the club in 2024/25 (Transfermarkt).

Slot will undoubtedly want to give him some time on the pitch prior to the Premier League opener against Bournemouth on 15 August so that he’s not going into the new campaign cold, but there’s also a delicate balance to be struck so that he isn’t thrown into the fray too soon in our upcoming pre-season games.

As ever, that decision will be taken carefully after comprehensive discussions between the Liverpool head coach and the medical staff, who’ve remained in England until such time that Hugo Ekitike’s transfer is fully completed.

Whenever he is back on the pitch, hopefully Mac Allister will go on to replicate the impact that he made throughout last season, when he was a crucial figure in the Reds’ march to top-flight glory.