Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp 'gutted' for Nathaniel Clyne after defender suffers ACL injury

Sidelined: Nathaniel Clyne will be out for around six months.
Liverpool FC via Getty Images
Joe Krishnan24 July 2019

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp admits he is "gutted" for Nathaniel Clyne after the Reds defender was ruled out for six months with a cruciate ligament injury.

The 28-year-old sustained the injury in the final moments of the Reds’ first game of their United States tour - a 3-2 defeat to Borussia Dortmund in South Bend, Indiana.

With swelling around the knee preventing a swift diagnosis, Clyne was forced to wait until Sunday before flying home from Boston to contemplate a long stint out of action.

However, the club’s medical staff were buoyed by the nature of his ACL tear, which they believe is ‘clean’ enough to heal in as little as six months following surgery.

While Klopp acknowledged the severity of the injury and poor timing with the new season just weeks away, the German coach appreciates it could have been a lot worse.

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“What can I say other than how gutted we all are for Clyney," he said. "He was training and playing so well - he was in outstanding shape.

“Clearly an injury of this nature isn’t a happy moment for any player, but the silver lining for him is that, according to the medical guys, it’s a straightforward ACL injury. This means fixing it and coming back from it should follow a path that is free from pitfalls and complications.

“At the moment there isn’t much more to say beyond we’ll all support Clyney in whatever way we can and we look forward to seeing him back on the pitch as soon as responsibly possible.

“He is such a sound professional and is naturally very fit and strong, so all these things are in his favour.”

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Clyne signed for Liverpool in 2015 from Southampton but the right-back has fallen down the pecking order at Anfield behind England duo Trent Alexander-Arnold and Joe Gomez.

He had been linked with a possible return to former club Crystal Palace but with the injury scuppering his chances of a move, the right-back must now focus on returning to action at some point in the New Year.

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