Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp refused to reveal the extent of Sadio Mane’s injury after he was forced off during the win over Everton at the weekend.
The 24-year-old limped off at Anfield with a knee injury after a challenge with Everton defender Leighton Baines, but he was in positive mood after the game and was walking without crutches.
Klopp himself seemed quite upbeat about the problem immediately after the game, but the German tactician’s wasn’t so positive about the £30m summer signing’s status when speaking to the media in his press conference on Tuesday.
“It’s not 100 per cent clear. We have to wait a little bit. I can say for sure he won’t be available for tomorrow [against Bournemouth],” he is quoted as saying by The Mirror.
“It is not very positive. But we cannot say what it is exactly. The knee is swollen. We wait for the final assessment. It’s possible [his season could be over] but why should I say that now?
“When a knee is swollen, it’s not often I hear afterwards that it’s nothing. But even then, or especially then, the more difficult a situation seems to be the better it is to handle it.
“Everyone would miss Sadio. Southampton probably still miss him, Salzburg still miss him.”
Mane has been pivotal to Liverpool’s success this season, scoring 13 goals and providing six assists in 27 Premier League games to keep them in the hunt for a top-four finish.
His absence had a very negative effect on results while on international duty at the Africa Cup of Nations in January, and so if he is indeed ruled out for a significant period of time, and possibly for the rest of the season, then it will be a hammer blow to Liverpool’s hopes.
While he will definitely miss the game against Bournemouth, Liverpool fans will be crossing their fingers and hoping it isn’t for much longer.