Salah and van Dijk to miss Liverpool game against Southampton
Salah was substituted in the opening half of Liverpool’s FA Cup final penalty shoot-out victory over Chelsea on Saturday with a groin issue
Egyptian star Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk are set to miss Liverpool’s Premier League trip to Southampton on Tuesday as Jürgen Klopp looks to protect their fitness before the Champions League final.
Salah was substituted in the opening half of Liverpool’s FA Cup final penalty shoot-out victory over Chelsea on Saturday with a groin issue, while Van Dijk was substituted at the end of 90 minutes. He had earlier felt a twinge in his knee.
Both players have been mainstays of Liverpool’s success this season and Klopp will take no risks with either player for the visit to St Mary’s.
Salah was asked if he would be fit for the showdown with Real Madrid in Paris on May 28 and replied “of course” to underline his thirst for revenge against the Spanish champions. He was injured in the first half of Liverpool’s 2018 Champions League final defeat in Kyiv after a challenge by Sergio Ramos.
Similarly, Liverpool will be determined to ensure Van Dijk is fully fit for the Madrid game. Whether the duo are available for the club’s final Premier League game of the season, the visit of Wolverhampton Wanderers to Anfield, remains to be seen.
There are also likely to be a host of other changes at Southampton with Kostas Tsimikas, who scored the winning penalty against Chelsea, Joe Gomez, Roberto Firmino and James Milner among those in contention to start.
Liverpool’s relentless schedule has started to take its toll on Klopp’s squad, with the midfielder Fabinho having suffered a hamstring injury against Aston Villa last week.
The Brazil international is hopeful of being fit for the Madrid game.
