Virgil van Dijk among trio absent - four Liverpool training observations made

Liverpool stepped up their preparations in training ahead of their trip to Brighton and Hove Albion tomorrow (12.30).

A win for the Reds at the Amex Stadium will see them move within three points of Manchester City and pile the pressure on in the title race.

Here are four things we spotted as Jurgen Klopp's men put their plans in place for the clash against the Seagulls.

Trio absent

Virgil van Dijk was one of three players who was not snapped during training in Kirkby on Thursday afternoon.

The centre-back has made 35 appearances for Liverpool this season after recovering from a long-term knee injury.

However, Van Dijk, along with Thiago Alcantara and Ibrahima Konate, did not feature in the latest batch of training photos.

Van Dijk and Thiago both played in Tuesday night’s 1-0 Champions League loss to Inter Milan. There is a chance that they instead undertook a recovery session, with the latter making his return from a hamstring issue.

Konate, however, was absent for the Inter clash. He suffered a knock in the 1-0 defeat of West Ham last weekend.

That was the first time the Frenchman has missed since his £36 million arrival from RB Leipzig last summer. He's either played or been on the bench for every other game.

However, Konate may be unavailable for successive matches.

Firmino steps up

Roberto Firmino continues to step up his work in a bid to return to the match-day squad.

The Brazil international hasn't played for Liverpool for the past six games due to a muscle injury.

The Reds have coped well without him but Klopp will desperately want Firmino back as soon as possible.

Judging by the photos taken, the striker seemed to be enjoying himself and had a smile on his face.

Firmino's movement did not look at all hampered by his previous setback, either.

That bodes well for Brighton and there could well be a place on the bench for him.

Youngsters involved

In the absence of van Dijk, Konate and Thiago, Klopp called upon some of the youngsters on the periphery of his squad to supplement the session.

Rhys Williams endured a difficult spell on loan at Swansea City during the first half of the season. The defender made just seven appearances before being recalled in January.

His return allowed Nat Phillips to join Bournemouth and Williams has now taken up the role of fifth-choice centre-back at Anfield.

He made 19 outings for Liverpool last season.

Meanwhile, Tyler Morton has probably even surpassed his own expectations this campaign.

The 19-year-old has played six times for Liverpool, which includes two full games in the Champions League.

Morton was also involved in the session and was embraced by Harvey Elliott as they made their way out onto the training pitch.

Salah talks

Mo Salah might not be happy with his recent form.

Despite bagging 27 goals this season, the winger has fired blank in Liverpool's past three games.

Of course, that's nowhere near enough for the alarm bells to start ringing. It wouldn't be a surprise if he plundered a hat-trick against Brighton.

But given Salah's own high standards, he will be disappointed - especially after hitting the post twice against Inter.

The Egyptian was snapped in conversation with Klopp, perhaps discussing the necessary subtle tweaks that could be made to ensure Salah again hits the goal trail.