Joe Gomez Hamstring Injury Adds to Liverpool Defensive Concerns | OneFootball

Liverpool’s Title Charge Faces Key Injury Concerns

Liverpool have surged to the top of the Premier League table as 2025 begins, establishing themselves as the team to beat. Arne Slot’s high-flying Reds continued their scintillating form with a 5-0 demolition of West Ham on Sunday. This emphatic victory leaves Liverpool eight points clear of second-placed Nottingham Forest, with a crucial game in hand.

While their relentless momentum suggests a likely march to the title, injuries to key players remain the greatest threat to their dominance. Despite dealing with notable absentees throughout the campaign, Slot knows he can ill-afford the loss of pivotal figures like Virgil van Dijk or Mohamed Salah. Let’s assess the current injury landscape for Liverpool.

Joe Gomez’s Hamstring Woes

Sunday’s triumph over West Ham came at a potential cost as Joe Gomez left the pitch with a suspected hamstring injury. Gomez, already filling in for the sidelined Ibrahima Konaté, could be facing a spell on the sidelines.

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Slot acknowledged the seriousness of the issue post-match, stating: “You saw today an injury of Joe Gomez. If a player says he wants to stop, he has to be changed. In a sprint, then we all know it’s a hamstring and we all know it’s going take a while before he is back. I don’t know how long, but he will be out for quite a bit.”

Potential return date: Unknown

Updates on Ibrahima Konaté

Konaté has not featured for Liverpool since their Champions League triumph over Real Madrid in November. However, Slot offered a glimmer of hope regarding his return, suggesting that the French defender could be available for the crucial clash against Manchester United next week.

“They [Konaté and Conor Bradley] will not be back for West Ham United, but then there is a week in between [before the game against Manchester United] so let’s see how close they are then.

Photo: IMAGO

“It’s difficult for me to tell you at this moment because they don’t train with the group yet, but hopefully in the upcoming days they come closer to that situation. And then again, Ibou has been out then for five or six weeks maybe, Conor just as long I think, the same amount.

“And also for them, they are in competition with players that are completely fit and doing really well, so I have to make the right judgement the moment they are back with the team.”

Potential return date: January 2025

Conor Bradley’s Recovery Progress

Much like Konaté, Conor Bradley has been absent since the Madrid victory. Slot’s comments suggest that the young defender’s timeline aligns with Konaté’s, making a return in January plausible.

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Potential return date: January 2025

Federico Chiesa Building Fitness

Federico Chiesa’s absence from the West Ham squad raised questions, but Slot clarified that the Italian winger is undergoing careful management to regain full match fitness.

Photo: IMAGO

“We are working on his match fitness and whenever we can, we try to bring him on the bench with the team,” explained Slot. “But he was on the bench during the week, and we thought it was better for him to have some extra training sessions instead of joining us, so it’s a constant balance we have to find between getting him fitter and fitter and letting him join the team.”

Potential return date: January 2025