According to Jurgen Klopp, Liverpool midfielder Alexis Mac Allister will be available for selection after being noticeably absent in the FA Cup fourth-round win over Norwich City at the weekend.
Liverpool will host Chelsea in their Premier League clash at Anfield tomorrow evening, and Jurgen Klopp has been speaking in his press conference to give updates on availability ahead of the clash.
The Reds have tallied seven consecutive draws in open play against their West London-based visitors, with only penalties in both the FA Cup and Carabao Cup separating the two elite clubs from sharing the spoils, both of which Liverpool won.
Despite the curse hanging over the fixture, Klopp will need his team to find the three points needed to keep them comfortable at the top of the Premier League table, and nothing short of a victory against Mauricio Pochettino’s side will be accepted on home turf.
The Liverpool boss took to his pre-match press conference today to reflect on the meeting with Chelsea and gave promising updates on potential returning players who have re-joined training after injuries.
Whilst Klopp was not confident that Thiago Alcantara would be ready to return in time for the fixture under the lights at Anfield tomorrow, he was very confident that Alexis Mac Allister would make his return.
Speaking to the media at the AXA training ground, Klopp revealed:
“Macca [Alexis Mac Allister] trained yesterday so he should be fine.”
Will Alexis Mac Allister start against Chelsea?
There is no doubt that Mac Allister would be an incredible asset to Liverpool in the centre of the pitch, as he would likely come up against his former midfield partner Moises Caicedo and could easily exploit the Chelsea star’s weaknesses.
However, Klopp has a number of midfielders at his disposal, with Dominik Szoboszlai returning to action at the weekend, so the manager may be cautious about selecting the Argentine in his starting eleven if he is not 100 percent.
The 25-year-old, who signed for the club last summer, has been a breath of fresh air on Merseyside, and his experience playing a multitude of positions in midfield has given Klopp the opportunity to lean on him when positions have been lacking in depth.
Whilst Mac Allister has been arguably most influential in a more advanced midfield position at Brighton and Hove Albion and on the international stage with Argentina, Klopp has been deploying him in a six-role system—one that Graham Potter also liked to play him in at Brighton before Roberto De Zerbi moved him to a more advanced attacking role.
With that being said, it will be a massive boost to have Mac Allister back in the team at any capacity whether he starts against Chelsea or comes off the bench, he can be extremely influential in securing another win.
