Trent Alexander-Arnold injury: Can Jurgen Klopp’s Reds overcome loss on top of Mohamed Salah’s absence?

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Already stretched thin with Mohamed Salah’s departure for the Africa Cup of Nations, Liverpool will now have more worries with right back Trent Alexander-Arnold slated to miss a few weeks. As Liverpool advanced in the FA Cup by defeating Arsenal 2-0 on Sunday, the England international picked up a knock which was revealed to be a hyper-extension of his knee by assistant manager Pepijn Lijnders. The injury doesn’t have a concrete recovery frame as it does include a small tear but Lijnders did set Alexander-Arnold’s recovery at a few weeks. 

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“He will get some rest and then hopefully he can come back to where he was,” he said about the injury. “Because this guy was decisive in all the games and was the one who created constantly for us from deep and gave the team a high level of flexibility. We will really miss him.”

Leading the Premier League by only three points over Aston Villa, Liverpool don’t have much margin for error in upcoming matches. Due to the quirks of the upcoming schedule, while there’s no good time for an injury, this is one where Alexander-Arnold’s absence will have the smallest impact on the title race. Between now and the end of January, the Reds will only play in two league matches versus Bournemouth and Chelsea with EFL Cup and FA Cup play splitting up the month.

It provides time for Alexander-Arnold to recover which is critical as Joe Gomez has already been deputizing at left back due to Andrew Robertson being sidelined with an injury of his own. Liverpool’s creativity is reliant on Alexander-Arnold stepping into midfield, spraying the ball forward which is why he has two goals and three assists during the season. Combined with Salah’s 14 goals and eight assists, missing during this period and potentially until mid-February if Egypt reaches the AFCON final, defense will be key for Jurgen Klopp’s men. 

After a shaky start in defense, the center back pairing of Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Kounate has been close to impenetrable for Liverpool. When the two have both played, the Reds have a 7-5-1 record, scoring 26 goals and allowing 14 in only 13 games. Already with the best defensive record in the league in terms of goals allowed, what was seen as a weakness heading into the season has now become one of Liverpool’s biggest strengths. 

With Diogo Jota back in attack, if Darwin Nunez can find form there’s no reason why Liverpool can’t keep their good run going. If things change from a few weeks to a month, the outlook may not be as rosy but the depth is there to compete for the title and weather the storm.