Cody Gakpo: Injury progress & potential return date for Liverpool forward
- Liverpool suffered an agonising late 2-1 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League
- Cody Gakpo levelled the game just before half-time but pulled up with an injury after scoring
- The forward was substituted at half-time with Liverpool left sweating on his fitness
It turned out to be a disastrous afternoon for Liverpool in north London on Saturday.
Despite a spirited performance, they conceded a 95th-minute own goal to lose 2-1 to Tottenham Hotspur, finished the game with nine men after two red cards and received an apology from the PGMOL for Luis Diaz's goal being wrongly ruled out for offside in the first half.
To make things worse, Liverpool's goalscorer Cody Gakpo was substituted at half-time with what could be a nasty injury for the Dutch forward. The former PSV man has netted three goals in his last four matches after a slow start to the campaign, but he could now be set to spend some time on the sidelines.
When will Cody Gakpo return from injury?
Having just netted a wonderful goal from Virgil van Dijk's cushioned header, spinning and striking a fierce effort past Guglielmo Vicario, Gakpo fell to the floor in pain rather than jubilation.
The 24-year-old had picked up a knock when Destiny Udogie landed on his foot several minutes earlier, with Gakpo aggravating the issue in the process of scoring Liverpool's equaliser just before half-time.
Gakpo managed to carry on until half-time but was substituted for Diogo Jota - who would later get sent off - at the break. The forward left north London in a leg brace, with Jurgen Klopp suggesting it could a bad injury.
Speaking on Gakpo, the Liverpool boss said: "The biggest problem of the game, to be honest...before Cody Gakpo scored, we got a free-kick and he got injured and he is now with a brace limping down the corridor.
"That's my biggest problem, to be honest, in this moment. We lost two [to red cards] and maybe a third player - really bad, really bad. So, yes, that's something we have to deal with obviously."
When quizzed on the whether it could be a bad injury, he stated: "Possibly, I don't know. He wore a brace. He scored a goal but afterwards, but after that shot he felt it even more. It was from the foul before."
Liverpool will nervously await the diagnosis, with Gakpo a big miss for Klopp due to his versatility and ability to offer the Reds an alternative to Darwin Nunez. While there is no timeframe on his return yet, the early signs are not good.
READ MORE ON THE FALLOUT AND CONTROVERSY FROM TOTTENHAM 2-1 LIVERPOOL
manual