Liverpool injury picture clears ahead of Manchester City clash - but two doubts remain
Liverpool are edging back towards full fitness after the international break, though a couple of lingering issues could still shape Andoni Iraola's selection for Sunday's huge visit of Manchester City to Anfield.
The Liverpool Echo focuses on the team news angle, reporting that Iraola "faces enforced changes" for the Manchester City game due to a "double blow" (Liverpool Echo). A separate Echo piece goes further, suggesting the manager "has only one option" in attack if two players "fail to overcome international injuries", pointing to a selection headache up front (Liverpool Echo).
On a more positive note, Liverpool.com reports Iraola has been "handed injury boost" with seven Liverpool players "set for swift return" to action this week as the squad returns from a long three-week international break, with the manager "hopeful of having a largely healthy squad at his disposal" (Liverpool.com). That outlet also looks further ahead, noting five Liverpool stars have nine games coming up to impress Iraola before the next international break, with the whole squad expected to be needed for a busy run of fixtures (Liverpool.com).
This Is Anfield adds a slightly different line, reporting that Craig Bellamy gave Iraola "another boost" over the international period, though the specifics of that boost aren't detailed beyond the headline (This Is Anfield).
Taken together, the outlets broadly agree that Liverpool are returning from the break in reasonable shape, with Liverpool.com's reporting of seven players being available painting an upbeat picture (Liverpool.com). However, the Liverpool Echo's two pieces strike a more cautious tone, flagging a "double injury setback" and limited options that could force changes to the side that faces City (Liverpool Echo) (Liverpool Echo). It isn't entirely clear from the snippets whether the players mentioned in the Echo's injury concerns (Liverpool Echo) (Liverpool Echo) overlap with those described as returning by Liverpool.com (Liverpool.com), so the exact makeup of Iraola's available squad for this weekend remains slightly uncertain across the reports.
With Manchester City arriving at Anfield in what's being billed as a huge Premier League encounter (Liverpool Echo), all eyes will be on team news in the coming days to see whether Iraola can call upon a near-full squad as Liverpool.com suggests (Liverpool.com), or whether the Echo's injury concerns force his hand (Liverpool Echo) (Liverpool Echo).
Written with the help of AI, using the headlines from the publishers credited above. Each point links to the original report — tap the source name to read it in full.