Liverpool are preparing to cope without midfielder Thiago Alcantara for up to six weeks due to a hamstring injury, according to a report.
The injury-plagued Spaniard started alongside Jordan Henderson and Fabinho in Saturday's Premier League opener with Fulham before being forced off early in the second half.
Jurgen Klopp immediately admitted that Thiago's condition did not look promising, with the 31-year-old seen clutching his hamstring as he left the Craven Cottage turf.
Liverpool managed to claw their way back from 1-0 and 2-1 deficits to draw 2-2 against the Cottagers, but concern immediately turned to another layoff for Thiago.
According to The Athletic, Thiago has now undergone a scan on the issue, and it is severe enough to render him unavailable for up to six weeks, meaning he will not be available until the middle of September at the earliest.
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Thiago is reportedly set to undergo a second scan to determine an exact timeframe, but a separate report from the Liverpool Echo claims that the Reds do not believe his problem is of a truly "serious" nature.
Nevertheless, Thiago's injury comes as another bitter blow for club and player, with the former Bayern Munich man already spending a good chunk of his Liverpool career in the treatment room.
Thiago has made 71 appearances for the Reds since arriving in 2020 - scoring three goals and setting up five more - but he has also missed a further 44 matches through injury or illness.
The Spain international was restricted to just 17 Premier League starts in the 2021-22 campaign and joins fellow midfielders Curtis Jones and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in the treatment room.
Klopp was questioned on Liverpool's refusal to bolster their midfield ranks in the current transfer window after Thiago's injury, but the German - who will soon have Naby Keita back from illness - insisted that he was not prepared to only sign a short-term solution.
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"I know what will now come up, it's clear. We said we don't need a midfielder because we have enough - and we actually have enough, but the problem now is we get punished for something that is not our responsibility really because things like this can happen," Klopp told the press.
"Nobody could imagine that Curtis gets the thing he gets; it is nothing serious but he is a young boy and it is a kind of stress reaction. Bodies are like this. Naby is only ill and he will now be back definitely next week again. Oxlade happened early and now with Thiago that is, of course, not good and we will see.
"Look, a transfer must make sense now and in the long term; we have midfielders, we have still enough midfielders. It is not that we lack midfielders, but it's just some of them are injured.
"This is not a good situation, I don't like it at all, but we have to see how we react on that - but for sure not panicking."
The likes of Jude Bellingham, Matheus Nunes and Marcelo Brozovic have all been linked with moves to Anfield, and Klopp's side are allegedly considering a swap deal for the latter involving either Roberto Firmino or Keita.
Liverpool's injury list also includes Diogo Jota, Ibrahima Konate, Kostas Tsimikas and Caoimhin Kelleher ahead of Monday's Premier League clash with Crystal Palace at Anfield.
Ben Knapton
