Liverpool teenager continues to be involved in training after Harvey Elliott injury
Harvey Elliott is set to be sidelined for a prolonged period as Liverpool prepare to face Nottingham Forest.
Arne Slot has suffered the first significant injury of his Liverpool tenure with Harvey Elliott set for a spell on the sidelines.
The attacking midfielder sustained a fractured foot during England under-21 training and now faces a layoff of around six weeks. It’s a blow for the Reds despite Elliott being handed only one brief substitute outing in their three games so far. With Liverpool’s Champions League campaign starting against AC Milan next week, as well as their Carabao Cup defence beginning later this month, the fixture schedule is about to get a lot busier.
The better news is that Curtis Jones is back in training. The midfielder missed the past two games but was involved with the rest of his teammates at the AXA Training Centre on Thursday. He should be available to face Nottingham Forest at Anfield on Saturday.
What’s more, Federico Chiesa, a £12.5 million signing from Juventus on the penultimate day of the summer transfer window, used the international break to build fitness. He also rubbed shoulders with Mo Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Co in training.
And another notable player involved was Trey Nyoni. The 17-year-old continues to be closely watched by Slot, with Elliott’s injury seemingly keeping him around the fray. Nyoni enjoyed an impressive pre-season period and won the praise of his boss after a 1-0 victory over Real Betis in the USA. “I think he did really well today but it was only an hour,” said Slot . “He was one of the reasons why we scored the goal, because he turned really quickly and [played] a spot-on pass in between the lines” said the Liverpool manager
“And he was also involved in the biggest chance in the second half.” The Dutchman also shared his thoughts on integrating the youngster into the Liverpool first team during the upcoming campaign:
“But he’s just turned 17 and his body has to grow, and we are really careful with him. So he doesn’t join every session and sometimes he goes out a bit earlier because he only turned 17.”
“You can see his quality but you can also see his body still needs some time to grow to play at Premier League level.”
With Jones and Chiesa both likely available to replace Forest, Nyoni could instead feature for Liverpool under-21s against Derby County tomorrow - but the fact he keeps rubbing shoulders with some of the best players in the world is a ringing endorsement of his qualities.
Liverpool training squad for Forest
Defenders: Alexander-Arnold, Bradley, Van Dijk, Konate, Quansah, Gomez, Alexander-Arnold, Robertson, Tsimikas.
Midfielders: Endo, Gravenberch, Mac Allister, Jones, Szoboszlai, Nyoni, Morton
Forwards: Salah, Diaz, Jota, Nunez, Chiesa, Gakpo