Home Football ‘I said if I wish you good luck, it would be a lie’ – Jurgen Klopp on Salah and Endo as he searches for a solution to the forward’s absence

‘I said if I wish you good luck, it would be a lie’ – Jurgen Klopp on Salah and Endo as he searches for a solution to the forward’s absence

Football — 01/06/2024

Many a true word is spoken in jest, so when Jurgen Klopp told Mohamed Salah he’d be lying if he didn’t wish him luck at the Africa Cup of Nations, he wasn’t entirely joking.

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“I said if I wish you good luck, it would be a lie,” said Klopp, referring to Salah and Wataru Endo, who will represent Japan in the Asia Cup.

“From a personal point of view, I would be happy if they go out in the group stage, but that’s probably not possible. They can go on and win it. So it was ‘good luck and come back healthy’. We have to deal with it and we will deal with it. I am pretty positive that we will find a way.”

Some athletes’ absence creates a void. Salah leaves a chasm the size of the Grand Canyon. In his 27 appearances across all competitions this season, the Egyptian has scored 18 goals and provided nine assists, his overall contribution as productive as ever, making the timing of the Africa Cup of Nations about as welcome as a Geordie interior decorator at Sunderland’s Stadium of Light.

The incredible message Jürgen Klopp gave to Endo and Salah on their absence in Liverpool

Salah’s availability, in addition to his outstanding output, makes him so dependable. He has missed just one of Liverpool’s 73 Premier League games since returning from the 2021 edition of Afcon, which was contested in 2022 because to the Covid epidemic.

Fortunately, Klopp has choices as a month without Salah begins in the FA Cup third round against Arsenal.

Diogo Jota and Harvey Elliott are the most likely replacements for Salah as Liverpool’s right-sided attacker, however teenager Kaide Gordon impressed in the Europa League after a long injury layoff and will be considered for the cup.

Klopp's Confidence in Liverpool Despite Salah, Endo's Absence

There is also the possibility of swapping Luis Diaz from left to right during the next month. If Klopp utilizes Cody Gakpo as a center striker, Darwin Nunez will be able to play off the wing.

The most of the attention will be on Nunez, the Uruguay international who is still looking for that clinical edge that would elevate him from an extremely potential striker to a world-class one.

He has eight goals and eight assists in 28 games this season, which is a respectable total that is obscured by the number of easy chances he has wasted, particularly in the last month.