Liverpool have been dealt a major injury blow ahead of their Premier League clash with Manchester City on Sunday afternoon. Andoni Iraola's side will be without Alexander Isak and Cody Gakpo for the crunch fixture.
Isak and Gakpo ruled out
Isak suffered an injury during Sweden's Europa League match against Romania, with Graham Potter admitting at the time that it wouldn't be too serious. He said: "He's got a small problem with his thigh. It's not a big one but because of the amount of games we've got in a small space of time, he won't be able to make those." However, Iraola has now confirmed he won't be back for the weekend.
Speaking in his pre-match press conference, the Spaniard said: "They will not play the game. They are not ready. Unfortunately for us, both got injuries during the international break. As a manager you're always waiting until the games end and the doctor doesn't call you, doesn't give you bad news. But in this case we've been unlucky."
Gakpo's ankle injury and City's team news
Gakpo, meanwhile, was forced off with an apparent ankle injury inside 20 minutes of the Netherlands clash with Serbia after a challenge from Premier League rival Sasa Lukic.
City had injury worries of their own, but Enzo Maresca is confident that Erling Haaland is fit to start: "He's good. He went to Marbella, [had] two, three days off, played golf, recovery. Ready for Anfield. He's good, thank you. It was good [to see him and the rest of the squad]. The players were thinking again about their national team, some days off and then go again. It was good [to see him again]."
However, City will be without Phil Foden, who is still serving his ban for his red card against Manchester United last month.
