Liverpool arrive at another defining weekend with familiar questions circling. The fixture is Manchester United away, the venue is Old Trafford, and the uncertainty sits where calm is usually expected, in goal.
Arne Slot has confirmed that Alisson Becker has yet to return to full Liverpool training before Sunday’s Premier League meeting with United. The Brazilian has been absent since the Champions League last-16 second-leg win over Galatasaray on March 18, with a minor muscle issue keeping him out of seven straight matches.
For Liverpool, injuries have become more than a medical bulletin. They have shaped selection, altered rhythm and tested depth at the sharpest stage of the season.
Alisson Wait Continues
Alisson remains close, although not close enough for certainty. Slot’s update was careful, measured and revealing.
“Ali hasn’t trained with us yet,” Slot said in the pre-match press conference on Friday morning.
“Very close to training with us, so I have to hear today from the medical staff if he is able to train today or tomorrow, or otherwise the start of next week.
“He is very close, but we, of course, also do not want to take any risks because that is never what you do with a player and that’s also not what we do.”
That final line matters. Liverpool need Alisson, yet they need him properly fit even more. A rushed return at this point would carry obvious risk, particularly with the run-in still to come.
Goalkeeping Depth Tested
In Alisson’s absence, Giorgi Mamardashvili and Freddie Woodman have shared responsibility. Woodman started the 3-1 win over Crystal Palace last weekend, stepping in after Mamardashvili suffered a knee issue in the Merseyside derby victory over Everton.
That leaves Liverpool facing the possibility of travelling to Old Trafford without their first-choice goalkeeper and with doubts around the wider goalkeeping picture. For a match that can turn on moments, crosses, rebounds and nerve, that is no small detail.
Salah…
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