Liverpool News: "Mohammed Salah is out," confirms Jurgen Klopp ahead of Champions League 2nd Leg Clash against Barcelona
What's the news?
Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp has just confirmed that star forward Mohamed Salah has been ruled out of Tuesday night's Champions League semi-final second leg against Barcelona at Anfield. Salah suffered a concussion on Saturday night in Liverpool's 3-2 victory over Newcastle United in the Premier League.
In case you didn't know..
In the 68th minute, Salah was knocked out by Newcastle keeper Martin Dubravka and the Egyptian stayed down on the field for quite some time duafter the incident. Salah’s neck was badly twisted and he had to be taken off on a stretcher. However, fans could breathe easy as Salah was conscious while being stretchered off the pitch by the medical staff.
Opposition manager Rafael Benitez also walked down to the touchline and was spotted consoling Salah as he was stretchered off.
The Heart of the Matter
The protocol surrounding concussion now means Salah is out for the Champions League match but will be available for Liverpool's final Premier League game against Wolves.
Speaking to reporters, Jurgen Klopp broke the news of Salah's injury and said, "It is concussion and that means he is not allowed to play. He feels ok, but it is not enough for a medical point of view. He can play at the weekend."
Liverpool also will be without their another attacking option Roberto Firmino, who is also out injured.
When asked about what his approach will be against Barcelona as the Reds miss two key players, Klopp replied, "The approach? We try to win the game. That makes sense. The situation is not what you want to have. You can’t play against Barcelona and tell the world, watch this."
The German manager also added, "We try to win the game. If at a specific moment they give us an opportunity to go to the next round we try to do it.
"Together with our supporters it’s been a long season. There’s a little chance to make it longer but these are the last two home games of an incredible season."
What's ahead?
Liverpool are 3-0 behind on aggregate as they host a rampant Barcelona side led by Lionel Messi, who is in blistering form. This means that Liverpool will have to at least score 4 goals to win the match and also simultaneously not concede a single goal against the Blaugranes.
With Salah now added to the list of Liverpool injuries which already include names like Firmino and Naby Keita, winning the second leg and the semi-final tie looks like a herculean task for the Reds.