Thiago Alcantara
Thiago Alcantara may be forgiven for feeling a sense of deja vu at Liverpool just now. A comeback is, according to his manager, imminent, but the former Bayern Munich man hasn’t kicked a ball in a Liverpool shirt since hobbling off in that 3-0 win over Crystal Palace on September 18. Klopp hinted that the 30-year-old could be fit for a return against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League on Wednesday night.
Jurgen Klopp said: “Thiago was in team training for the first time [on Thursday]. We did a session where he could be part of pretty much the whole session, but that doesn’t mean he is ready to play a football game, unfortunately. We will see what we do with him, but he is closer than he was last week – much closer. Now we have to see what we do with that.”
But given the calibre of the opposition and the lack of football played lately, the Reds boss may err on the side of caution, even though his options are becoming increasingly bare. Klopp expects it to be after the international break when fans will begin to see the best of Thiago, indicating that while he may return to the squad this week, a “block of proper, proper training” will be needed in the next fortnight.
Jurgen Klopp said: “The plan is [Thiago] now has a block of days for proper, proper training on the pitch, with the ball, and with the team, plus extra training [on top of that.],”
Whether he will get the chance to do that, though, is not yet clear. Luis Enrique is set to name his Spain squad for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers with Greece and Sweden and could wish to see the Liverpool man in there, regardless of his lack of activity of late. Klopp said he has yet to speak to his player about those particular plans, even if he doesn’t expect Thiago to be called up
Jurgen Klopp said: “No I don’t expect him to [go with Spain], but that doesn’t mean anything. I have no idea. He was injured the whole time, he was not with them last time, I don’t know if they are in talks.”
With Roberto Firmino’s hat-trick at Watford evidence of how he benefited from remaining on Merseyside during the most recent break, Klopp will be keen to see Thiago also stay put at the AXA Centre ahead of that mid-November run through to the end of the calendar year.
