Liverpool are dealing with several fitness concerns heading into the international break, with captain Virgil van Dijk withdrawing from the Netherlands squad and Dominik Szoboszlai awaiting assessment results after joining up with Hungary.
The two-week pause comes after Liverpool bounced back from successive defeats to Arsenal and Fenerbahce by beating Crystal Palace 3-1 at the weekend. Manager Andoni Iraola has said his main wish during the final international break of the year is to avoid fresh injuries, particularly after losing Alexander Isak, Cody Gakpo and Szoboszlai during the autumn window.
Van Dijk and Szoboszlai concerns
Van Dijk was called up by new Dutch head coach Xavi for the Nations League double-header against Greece and Germany, but it was confirmed on Monday that he and Sunderland striker Brian Brobbey had pulled out for fitness-related reasons.
A statement said: “Virgil van Dijk and Brian Brobbey have been dropped from the Dutch national team's upcoming international matches. Both players did not return fit from the past weekend's matches and are therefore unavailable. The squad thus currently consists of 23 players.”
Szoboszlai was forced off in the second half against Palace due to a knee complaint, with Iraola admitting the midfielder was not fully fit. “Dom definitely wasn’t 100 per cent in the second half,” Iraola said. “Let’s see. The last thing we need now is to lose players in the international games. In the last international break we lost three very important players in Alex (Isak), Cody (Gakpo) and Dom. So now I'm praying - it's the last thing we need.”
Gravenberch and Frimpong doubts
Ryan Gravenberch has missed Liverpool’s last two games with a heel injury and was left out of the matchday squad for the trip to Selhurst Park. “The only doubt we will have is Ryan,” Iraola said in the pre-match press conference. “The Ryan Gravenberch thing is a day-to-day thing, it’s a matter of pain. Let’s see if he can deal with the pain and he can help us.”
Jeremie Frimpong picked up a muscle injury during the comeback win over Brentford last month, resulting in another lay-off since his arrival from Bayer Leverkusen. “Jeremie Frimpong is obviously a new muscle injury and it happened, I think, in the second or third minute he was playing, difficult to predict and we will have to wait until he recovers,” Iraola said. “But it’s going to be difficult, I think, before the [November international] break. We will try but it’s going to be difficult to have him.”
Long-term absentees
Giovanni Leoni, signed from Parma last summer for around £26million, has been limited to one senior appearance after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament tear on his debut in the Carabao Cup against Southampton in September 2025. “It’s taking more time than we wanted,” Iraola said. “Giovanni’s injury, I wasn’t here but talking to the medical department, it was not just an ACL – it was a bad injury, a lot of things around the knee were involved apart from the ACL.”
Hugo Ekitike has not played since rupturing his Achilles against Paris Saint-Germain in April, with his estimated recovery at nine months to a full year. He was included in Liverpool’s squad for the Champions League league phase, with hope he could return for the final two group games in January.
Conor Bradley, out since suffering bone and ligament damage at Arsenal in January, is nearing a return to training. “[He is] doing very well,” Iraola said. “Conor is not so far from training with the group – not like full training but doing some things with the group. I think Conor is not very far from starting doing things with us.”
Most of the injured players are targeting a return for the home game against Manchester United on Sunday, November 22, with Bradley potentially back for the visit of Sunderland on December 2.
