If Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool are to make a deep run into Champions League and finish in the top-four of the Premier League, they’ll have to do it without a key midfielder. German international Emre Can is set to miss the remainder of the campaign with a back injury.
Despite the fact that Klopp had previously been hopeful that the German may be able to return sooner than later, the manager confirmed at a press briefing prior to Tuesday’s Champions League clash that Can will not return to the pitch this season.
Last week, Klopp told the English press that he hoped Can’s recovery from the injury might be “a little bit quicker than maybe we thought.” The club never put a timetable on Can’s return from the injury, though, and now it appears he won’t be seen again this season.
You can find odds on just about everything nowadays with the way online betting is growing in popularity, but you won’t find many sites that give Can favorable odds of returning in a Liverpool shirt next season. The midfielder’s contract with the club is set to expire once the season ends, and no terms have been agreed upon for a potential new deal to keep him on Merseyside. He figures to be a hot commodity if he’s able to leave on a free transfer in the summer, with Italian giants Juventus being the club most heavily linked with the player.
Can’s absence leaves the Reds pretty thin in the centre of the park. Jordan Henderson, who has a lengthy injury track record of his own, James Milner and Georginio Wijnaldum are the only battle-tested veterans available to Klopp with Can sidelined. Henderson will be the first-choice number six, as Wijnaldum doesn’t have much experience in the position. Wijnaldum has also struggled with his form in his second season with the club.
Jordan Henderson – One of only three central midfielders available to Liverpool in Can’s absence
Can has missed Liverpool’s last three games after leaving injured late in the team’s 5-0 win over Watford. He additionally withdrew from international duty with Germany. Assuming the injury doesn’t linger too deep into the summer, though, Can is expected to be a part of Joachim Low’s side that travels to Russia to defend their World Cup title.
Can was a part of the transfer haul that came to Liverpool after the lucrative sale of Luis Suarez to Barcelona. He joined the side under Brendan Rodgers in the summer of 2014 on a £10 million deal from Bayer Leverkusen.
Since Klopp took over in October of 2015, only Roberto Firmino (128) has made more appearances for the club than Can’s 115. The 24-year-old has bagged 10 goals in a Liverpool shirt in those 115 appearances, four of which have come this season. He will finish his Premier League campaign having scored three goals with four assists in addition to one Champions League tally.
If Can leaves, Liverpool already have a replacement lined up in Leipzig’s Naby Keita. Liverpool spent a pretty penny to trigger Keita’s release clause last summer, and the two clubs agreed that the midfielder would stay in Germany for another season before joining the Reds in the summer of 2018. Keita is a holding midfielder in the mold of Can, so even if the latter leaves for greener pastures Klopp already has a potential replacement set to join the team.
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