HENDERSON & STURRIDGE TO FEATURE FOR LIVERPOOL - BUT COUTINHO REMAINS A DOUBT
The England pair will both be options at St
Mary's for the Reds boss, who is leaving it
late to decide whether the Brazilian
playmaker will also make the trip
Daniel Sturridge and Jordan Henderson are
both set to feature for Liverpool's Capital
One Cup quarter-final against
Southampton on Wednesday, but Philippe
Coutinho remains a doubt.
Henderson and Sturridge, who both
returned to action as substitutes in
Sunday's 1-0 win over Swansea, are set to
travel to St Mary’s, but are likely to be
options off the bench rather than
candidates to start.
“They have had no physical reaction [after
Sunday’s game]. It’s good news and they
did their job,” Klopp explained at his press
briefing at Melwood.
“That was good and important for us. They
helped us keep the result, which was not
easy – especially for Jordan in his position.
“Daniel did what we spoke about before,
that he should be our target for winning
balls, once we got the ball be an option,
the first option. That’s what he did;
everybody could see his quality in a few
moments. It was good for us.
“Now the problem with the Southampton
game is we cannot ignore that it could be
extra-time. I’m sure 120 minutes would be
too much for both.
“We don’t have to think about starting, we
cannot go into a game and know we have
to change these two players for sure.
"But if nothing happens from now until the
plane has started, they’ll join us and be in
the squad and we again have these two
options.”
Coutinho, meanwhile, will require a late
fitness check as Klopp is loathe to
unnecessarily risk him.
“I cannot make decisions in this moment
because we have another training [session]
today,” explained the Reds boss.
“At the end, we have to talk about
everything again with the medical
department and talk to Phil. It will be close,
possible, but we have to check and double
check the situation and then we’ll make a
decision. We have to wait.”
Klopp detailed the factors involved in
selecting his best 11. “The strongest team
depends on your situation – how much
they played in the last few days,” he said.
“We can’t ignore the last two games and we
can’t ignore the next game, that’s the
situation.
“Usually you need a completely full squad
in the best space; for this, in an ideal
world, you need six angry players who are
not in the squad. That’s not our situation
and we have to think about it.
“It’s a puzzle but at the end it will be the
strongest team, for sure.”
Liverpool are looking to make it four wins
on the spin and take a step closer to
silverware before they travel to Newcastle
in the league on Sunday.
Mary's for the Reds boss, who is leaving it
late to decide whether the Brazilian
playmaker will also make the trip
Daniel Sturridge and Jordan Henderson are
both set to feature for Liverpool's Capital
One Cup quarter-final against
Southampton on Wednesday, but Philippe
Coutinho remains a doubt.
Henderson and Sturridge, who both
returned to action as substitutes in
Sunday's 1-0 win over Swansea, are set to
travel to St Mary’s, but are likely to be
options off the bench rather than
candidates to start.
“They have had no physical reaction [after
Sunday’s game]. It’s good news and they
did their job,” Klopp explained at his press
briefing at Melwood.
“That was good and important for us. They
helped us keep the result, which was not
easy – especially for Jordan in his position.
“Daniel did what we spoke about before,
that he should be our target for winning
balls, once we got the ball be an option,
the first option. That’s what he did;
everybody could see his quality in a few
moments. It was good for us.
“Now the problem with the Southampton
game is we cannot ignore that it could be
extra-time. I’m sure 120 minutes would be
too much for both.
“We don’t have to think about starting, we
cannot go into a game and know we have
to change these two players for sure.
"But if nothing happens from now until the
plane has started, they’ll join us and be in
the squad and we again have these two
options.”
Coutinho, meanwhile, will require a late
fitness check as Klopp is loathe to
unnecessarily risk him.
“I cannot make decisions in this moment
because we have another training [session]
today,” explained the Reds boss.
“At the end, we have to talk about
everything again with the medical
department and talk to Phil. It will be close,
possible, but we have to check and double
check the situation and then we’ll make a
decision. We have to wait.”
Klopp detailed the factors involved in
selecting his best 11. “The strongest team
depends on your situation – how much
they played in the last few days,” he said.
“We can’t ignore the last two games and we
can’t ignore the next game, that’s the
situation.
“Usually you need a completely full squad
in the best space; for this, in an ideal
world, you need six angry players who are
not in the squad. That’s not our situation
and we have to think about it.
“It’s a puzzle but at the end it will be the
strongest team, for sure.”
Liverpool are looking to make it four wins
on the spin and take a step closer to
silverware before they travel to Newcastle
in the league on Sunday.
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