Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Dejan Lovren both missed out on Liverpool training ahead of the Reds’ Champions League clash with FC Porto, according to Goal correspondent Neil Jones.
The midfielder featured for the U23s on Sunday as he steps up his return to action following a ligament injury sustained last April, but was absent from preparations for the second leg against the Portuguese giants.
Lovren was an unused substitute against Chelsea on Sunday, but also missed out on the session.
No Oxlade-Chamberlain or Lovren in #LFC training today
— Neil Jones (@neiljonesgoal) April 16, 2019
OPINION
Obviously this isn’t great news for Liverpool, but it could be a whole lot worse. For one thing, neither of these players will have been expected to start against Porto on Wednesday. Lovren is firmly beneath Matip in the pecking order, while the newly revitalised Jordan Henderson and the sudden return to form of Naby Keita means that the Reds are looking pretty well-stocked in midfield areas, with regards to Oxlade-Chamberlain. The other main thing is that, in truth, this tie is probably done and dusted already. With a 2-0 advantage, you wouldn’t be surprised if the Reds maybe coasted through this one, and so not having a full strength squad will probably not matter too much. This is still a blow, of course, but it shouldn’t have fans losing too much sleep, and in the long term, it will be much better to exercise caution over these players instead of pushing them back for a potentially damaging early return.
