Midfielder gives his side much-needed stability and his absence could leave the Reds even more open than they already are
Liverpool manager Arne Slot is “hopeful” that Ryan Gravenberch can feature against Brentford on Saturday after the midfielder was ruled out of Wednesday’s Champions League fixture.
Gravenberch will not be available to face Eintracht Frankfurt following the ankle issue he suffered during Sunday’s defeat to Manchester United.
The midfielder limped off midway through the second half at Anfield and has not taken part in full training this week.
“Yeah, I had to take him off during the weekend because he limped a little bit, as we could all see,” said Slot.
“So, unfortunately, he’s not ready to play [against Frankfurt]. That already means I definitely have to change one player.
“And with him not being there, that might mean something for others as well, because he has such a particular quality in our squad, which we’ve seen when we played Bournemouth for example, when we played the Community Shield – that we missed a little bit of a player that was always protecting our back four.”
Pressure has been growing around Slot after Liverpool lost four consecutive matches in all competitions, following defeats to Crystal Palace, Galatasaray, Chelsea and United. It is the club’s longest losing streak in almost a decade.
Playing as an anchor, Gravenberch helps to give Liverpool’s midfield much-needed stability and his absence could leave the Reds even more open than they already are.
“Hopefully he will be available at the weekend,” Liverpool’s coach said. “But it’s an ankle injury, we have to wait and see.
“Give him a bit of time and see where he is when we come back from Frankfurt.”
