Liverpool playmaker Philippe Coutinho returned to training on Friday as he continues his race to be fit for the clash with Manchester United.
The Brazilian international hasn’t featured for the Reds since suffering a serious ankle injury in the win over Sunderland at the end of November.
While Jurgen Klopp’s side have been able to sustain their Premier League title push in his absence, the loss of Sadio Mane to international duty further weakens them from an attacking perspective, and so having Coutinho back will be a major boost.
Prior to his injury, the 24-year-old had contributed six goals and five assists in the league which shows in itself how influential he is to Liverpool’s play, and he will be desperate to return to full fitness and be in contention to face United on January 15.
Nevertheless, he’ll miss this weekend’s FA Cup clash with Plymouth Argyle and in all probability the first leg of the EFL Cup semi-finals against Southampton next week, but with a full week of training under his belt he’ll hope to return to take on Jose Mourinho’s side.
Meanwhile, that wasn’t the only bit of good news for Klopp as Daniel Sturridge also trained on Friday after he picked up a knock at Sunderland, as reported by Sky Sports.
Given the England international scored on his return to the starting line-up, he will hope to build some momentum by staying fit and keeping his place in the side.
However, as has been the problem throughout most of his career, he can’t steer clear of injuries and he’ll be hopeful that he can recover quickly from this latest setback to feature in the upcoming games.