Topic: Fabinho

[Ciara (with a capital "C")]

The definition of 'a blow'.

[Barneylfc∗]

The end of January is another 5 weeks after the new year, why would he be out until then?

Up to 8 weeks for the injury. A week or 2 in training before he's ready to start. As I said, worst case scenario.

[killer-heels]

Because Joyce is saying up to 8 weeks.

Fair enough. Very much doubt it will be that long but either way whatever. We will be fine. People are panicking for no reason.

[Lynndenberries]

Worst case scenario he's out until the end of January

Brighton - Wasn't playing anyway
Everton H
Bournemouth A
Watford H
Leicester A
Wolves H
Sheffield U H
Spurs A
Man U H
Wolves A

Throw in the World Club Cup, potential league Cup semi finals, and at least 1 FA Cup game (That he likely wouldn't play in anyway), it's a lot of games for the others to cover for.
Everton, Bournemouth, Leicester, Spurs, Man U and Wolves A are the tough games there.

We should be able to cope with that set of fixtures. There’s a few tricky games, but as others have said, he didn’t play much until January last season and we managed.

If there’s one area our squad has depth, it’s in midfield. Henderson has played as a six since Klopp came to the club and I think Wijnaldum’s performances there at the beginning of the season were underrated.

[Nick110581]

Fair enough. Very much doubt it will be that long but either way whatever. We will be fine. People are panicking for no reason.

We don't have a bug squad.

We have a LB and forward with niggling injuries too. Plus one CB is still out.

We also have loads of matches

[Lynndenberries]

Fair enough. Very much doubt it will be that long but either way whatever. We will be fine. People are panicking for no reason.

Basically. It’s a loss, but we will cope and continue to get results.

[duvva 💅]

All down to fucking Lovren

His bull in a china shop tackling technique totally responsible for Fabinho injury.

If he jockeys him instead of diving in and trying to rip his shirt off proving he's the big I am, then the guy doesn't fall on Fabinho

Caught quite a few with this.

Obviously it’s a joke post, isn’t it...?

[CraigDS]

We don't have a bug squad.

Would be good if we did. Could send them into the away teams hotel the night before games to keep them awake all night with their buzzing and bites.

[wige]

We went to 4-2-3-1 in midweek.

Squad is going to be pushed to its limit here.

Not sure that one injury does that. We've got loads of options across those 6 positions, and a nice enough fixture list to get away with using them:

The "2"
Gini,Hendo,Keita, Milner, Lallana, Ox
The "3"
Ox, Shaq, Lallana, Bobby, Mane, Mo
The "1"
Bobby, Mo, Div, maybe Mane.

So I think we're OK for options and cover as is. But another one or two knocks at the same time and it becomes more difficult to stay fresh during these next 6/8 weeks

[killer-heels]

We don't have a bug squad.

We have a LB and forward with niggling injuries too. Plus one CB is still out.

We also have loads of matches

We don't have a big squad? We have Fabinho, Lallana, Wijnaldum, Keita, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Henderson, Milner and even Shaqiri for our midfield options. We have more than enough and more than City in that area.

Fabinho didn't even become first choice until the end of December/January last season and we were league leaders up to that point anyway.

We have more than enough options.

[Zimagic]

Would be good if we did. Could send them into the away teams hotel the night before games to keep them awake all night with their buzzing and bites.

But would make evening games under the floodlights almost auto-losses... :/

[Caston]

Bad but we’ll cope. We were without our first choice goalie for a good few months and managed. Chance for others to step up.

[Red_Mist]

Ah fuck.

He’ll be missed, no doubt about that.

[duvva 💅]

Can’t say he won’t be a big miss, given how important he’s been this season, and we don’t have anyone who can play that position as well as he does.

Having said that we’ve got quite a few midfielders and we’ll adapt to it. The next few games aren’t the worst set of fixtures to adapt in. It’s from Leicester until the end of Jan where we a have a particularly tough run of games, but Champions find a way. And we will find a way.

[Nick110581]

We don't have a big squad? We have Fabinho, Lallana, Wijnaldum, Keita, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Henderson, Milner and even Shaqiri for our midfield options. We have more than enough and more than City in that area.

Fabinho didn't even become first choice until the end of December/January last season and we were league leaders up to that point anyway.

We have more than enough options.

Keita, Shaq and Lallana have had numerous issues so not sure they can be relied upon at moment.

This a huge test so we can keep our cushion at top of table. 

[Andypandimonium]

Take one game at a time and hopefully we'll still be on top when Fab comes back. Great chance for someone else to go on a run and make a name for themselves. At least it's not Mane!

[Jookie]

I’d drop Gini to 6 and put Ox in. Hope he is back by end of December at least.

I think we'll see a combination of Lallana, Wijnaldum and Henderson in the No.6 role. We'll also see some more opportunities for AOC, Keita and Milner in midfield. With Shaqiri back we may even see a bit of 4-2-3-1 and just play 2 midfielders as a double pivot.

We were always like to see a fair bit of rotation in December and January. That might just increase a bit more for certain players. Blow to lose Fabinho for an extended time. On the flip side it's a good opportunity for Keita and AOC to stake a claim.

I keep on seeing sections of our fans suggesting that we need progressive number 8's in the team. This will be an opportunity for that to happen on a regular basis over a 10-12 game period. Up to AOC and Keita to take these chances that will come their way.. Hopefully Keita can stay fit during this period and stake some sort of claim to be in the team on a more regular basis. For me he's 5th choice midfielder at best at the moment and really needs to take this opportunity to get a regular run in the team.

The other factor here may be Curtis Jones. Does this represent a chance for him? Lots of games and rotation. Another injury or suspension and he could easily be in the bench for a game or 2.

Like I said it's not good news that Fabinho is out. However, it represent opportunity for others in the squad. They need to grasp it. Fabinho will hopefully be back to full match sharpness by mid February ready for a double assault on the league and CL.

[deFacto please, you bastards]

Klopp saying obviously it's bad news, and that he will certainly miss the Christmas period, but we have options and plan to play without him and have played well without him [paraphrasing]

[him_15]

Injury is bound to happen, sooner or later, we have to cope with it, I believe Klopp is well prepared on this. Luckily we have lots of options in midfield.

[JC the Messiah]

We don't have a big squad? We have Fabinho, Lallana, Wijnaldum, Keita, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Henderson, Milner and even Shaqiri for our midfield options. We have more than enough and more than City in that area.

Fabinho didn't even become first choice until the end of December/January last season and we were league leaders up to that point anyway.

We have more than enough options.

Yeah, Fab is now the number one choice every time for the role he plays.  Fortunately, we have a lot of other options for that role in his absence, and the drop off in quality is not as significant as it would be if other players were out.  Of course, it's not ideal - but it's not the end of the world as we know it.

[killer-heels]

Keita, Shaq and Lallana have had numerous issues so not sure they can be relied upon at moment.

This a huge test so we can keep our cushion at top of table. 

They are in the squad and all are currently fit. They have to be relied on otherwise they shouldn't be here.

[Chakan]

Fuck sales out until the new year just what we need in December

[Crosby Nick]

Not good. He’s the hardest midfield to replace ‘like for like’. But we have numbers to cope and hopefully it means he’ll be back firing to give us a boost for the run in.

Salzburg and Leicester away look the games we’ll miss him the most in but let’s hope we get through relatively unscathed.

[OneTouchFooty]

Aww fuck, massive loss this at the worst possible time.

Klopp will have to start fancying Keita again pretty quickly.

[Schmohawk]

An opportunity for the other boys, especially Keita. Let's hope he survives.

[Andypandimonium]

The last time we had an injury "crisis", we didn't do too badly as I recall. Believe big or go home. 

[ToneLa]

Awful news.

Suppose the new year isn't too far away but we have a packed December.

Hope Keita in particular steps up.

[Dench57]

shit

could really use Keita coming in and starting to contribute right about now

[JC the Messiah]

The last time we had an injury "crisis", we didn't do too badly as I recall. Believe big or go home. 

JC likes this post.

[bornandbRED]

Hopefully Keita comes in. Although I can see Milner become a fixture again.

[rawcusk8]

Not the best bit of news but we’ll all agree that the fixtures he’s going to miss are largely winnable matches. Toughest game going on how the season has panned out is Leicester away. Every cloud and all of that..

[Caligula?]

Awful news but expected. I'm a little less optimistic than some about Keita though. It's not a question of whether he steps up or not, but whether he can step up or not. So far he hasn't shown that, but let's hope this is his moment.

[royhendo]

Bet we somehow keep it going and come out of it with a fresh Fabinho for the home stretch.

[Red_Mist]

Bet we somehow keep it going and come out of it with a fresh Fabinho for the home stretch.

Yeah, after the initial disappointment my mind turned to the thought of a fit and refreshed Fab storming round the pitch at the business end of the season.

[Charlie Adams fried egg]

Bet we somehow keep it going and come out of it with a fresh Fabinho for the home stretch.

Exactly. He'll be ready and rested.

[kaesarsosei]

I would like to mention that for any significant injuries we have had recently, the timescale for returns has tended to be slower than people's general first impressions.

Matip - seemingly minor, but now looks like being 1 month+ in the end and even that is a guess
AOC - I remember even myself initially thinking it was a blessing in disguise as it would mean him being out for 6-8 weeks and getting the summer off, instead it was a full 12 months
Alisson - 2 full months out after walking off unaided and with no limp from a calf injury (tbf I actually was relieved at this in the end, as when it happened I instantly feared an Achilles rupture)
Shaqiri - no idea what is even wrong with him, just that he is never available
Gomez - initial estimate, which was almost a year ago, was 6-8 weeks and it was well over 3 months in the end - in reality he never recovered fully that season

I personally am not expecting to see Fabinho until at least mid-January, possibly early Feb.

I feel like we have in general a very robust squad who don't get injured frequently (with one or two exceptions such as Lovren, Shaqiri and Lallana) but when they do, they aren't the sort to be rushed back from.  I'm not complaining about that, as we don't have a bad record of re-occurrences. I would be happy if Fabinho was out 2-3 weeks more than people are guessing if it meant he has no further issues with that particular injury for the rest of the season.

[stockdam]

Big loss for us as he is arguably one of our most important players. However it gives an opportunity for others and we should be able to cope without him.

[deFacto please, you bastards]

Shaqiri - no idea what is even wrong with him, just that he is never available

Injury to calf which he's had in the summer and has reoccured in the last two months

[jckliew]

O SHITE! Worse fears coming through!

[Ciara (with a capital "C")]

Awful news but expected. I'm a little less optimistic than some about Keita though. It's not a question of whether he steps up or not, but whether he can step up or not. So far he hasn't shown that, but let's hope this is his moment.

Agreed. It's beyond needing time to settle and find his feet now. He has been here for over a year and his inability to just be available when needed is disappointing. He was a big investment, his quality is apparent but he seems to be fragile. When you expect him to step up or you see an opportunity arise for him, he doesn't seem capable of taking it. Hugely frustrating so far, as his talent is unquestionable.

Whilst we are well stacked in midfield, Fabinho is more specialist - and I don't think it's unfair on the others to say he is our most important midfielder.

Hopefully Henderson is over his illnesses/injuries and Gini finds some consistency, as it feels it has been lacking with him this season. Great chance for AOC to find minutes in midfield now.