Liverpool star Cody Gakpo ‘facing WEEKS out’ in huge blow after seeing two key players banned
LIVERPOOL star Cody Gakpo is set to be sidelined for “several weeks” after injuring himself in the controversial defeat at Tottenham.
Jurgen Klopp’s woes are mounting ahead of Thursday’s Europa League clash with Union Saint-Gilloise and the weekend’s Premier League trip to Brighton.
AlamyJurgen Klopp’s woes are mounting amid injuries and suspensions[/caption]
EPALiverpool’s Cody Gakpo (R) hurt himself while scoring the equaliser at Spurs[/caption]
The Netherlands international forward, 24, hurt himself while scoring the equaliser at Spurs on Saturday.
He was substituted at half-time and was later spotted leaving the ground in a knee brace.
Now Dutch journalist Rik Elfrink has hinted that he may not be ready to return until after the international break later this month.
He tweeted: “Cody Gakpo is expected to be out for several weeks at Liverpool. If all goes well, a few weeks.
“The Dutch matches in October do not seem feasible for the former PSV player at the moment.”
That means that Klopp will be without THREE key men due to injury and suspension for the Brighton game.
Liverpool suffered a 2-1 loss at Spurs after finishing the game with nine men.
Curtis Jones was issued a straight red in the first half after his foot slipped on the top of the ball and caught Yves Bissouma.
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They also had a perfectly good Luis Diaz goal ruled out wrongly for offside after a VAR mix-up.
That led to the PGMOL issuing a statement admitting that a “significant human error” took place and called the decision “a clear and obvious factual error” by VAR official Darren England.
It got even worse for Liverpool in the 69th-minute when Portuguese forward Jota, 26, was given his marching orders for a second yellow card.
That left the Reds hanging on for a draw, but their brave efforts came undone in the final seconds as Joel Matip’s own goal condemned them to defeat.
Liverpool have broken their silence on the VAR fiasco by slamming those at fault – and promising to “escalate” the issue.
They released a statement saying they do not accept the explanation given by the PGMOL in their apology.
It read: “Liverpool Football Club acknowledges PGMOL’s admission of their failures last night. It is clear that the correct application of the laws of the game did not occur, resulting in sporting integrity being undermined.
“We fully accept the pressures that match officials work under but these pressures are supposed to be alleviated, not exacerbated, by the existence and implementation of VAR.
“It is therefore unsatisfactory that sufficient time was not afforded to allow the correct decision to be made and that there was no subsequent intervention.
“That such failings have already been categorised as “significant human error” is also unacceptable. Any and all outcomes should be established only by the review and with full transparency.
“This is vital for the reliability of future decision-making as it applies to all clubs with learnings being used to make improvements to processes in order to ensure this kind of situation cannot occur again.
“In the meantime, we will explore the range of options available, given the clear need for escalation and resolution.”
Action was taken by the PGMOL on Sunday as they removed VAR England from Nottingham Forest’s draw with Brentford.
