Liverpool lost defender Trent Alexander-Arnold as they regained the top spot in the Premier League with a dominant 3-1 win over Burnley at Anfield. Manager Jurgen Klopp revealed the status of the defender and what transpired that led to the withdrawal of the England international.
Having seen Manchester City rise to the summit of the Premier League following a win over Everton earlier in the day, Liverpool needed a win to regain the top spot. The Reds were already without Mohamed Salah, Thiago Alcantara and Alisson, all of whom were missing through injury for Klopp’s side.
Trent Alexander-Arnold started a second successive game for the Reds and assisted the opener for Diogo Jota, for the 58th league assist of his career. The 25-year-old did not, however, re-emerge for the second half following the interval, with Harvey Elliott coming on in his stead.
Following the match, Jurgen Klopp revealed that his vice captain had suffered a recurrence of his previous injury, which had kept him out of action last month. The manager said that the status of the defender would be assessed following his injury, but he believes it to be nothing major.
He said to Sky Sports (via DAZN):
“Same area in the knee. Nothing really bad but he felt it again and we have to see. We will assess it. We were made aware of it in the game so thought ‘what can we do?’ then Trent said ‘no it’s fine’. But it’s not as he feels it so we had to be careful and take him off.”
Alexander-Arnold made history during the game, becoming the Premier League defender with the most assists in history. The Englishman has now provided four assists in the league this season for Klopp’s league leaders.
Alexander-Arnold injury sours good day for Liverpool
Liverpool returned to the summit of the Premier League standings following a comfortable 3-1 win over Burnley. The celebratory mood of the win was, however, dampened by the injury to Alexander-Arnold.
The Reds scored first through Jota, before Dara O’Shea equalized for Burnley. The Clarets showed profligacy in front of goal, with David Datro Fofana especially guilty of missing gilt-edged opportunities.
Klopp’s side punished them in the second half, with Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez putting the game to bed. The Reds will hope to have Alexander-Arnold back soon, but they can turn to Conor Bradley to provide cover in the meantime.
Liverpool moved back to the top of the table with the win and remain two points clear of Manchester City, having played a game more. They will travel to Brentford next weekend before facing Chelsea in the Carabao Cup final on the 25th.
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