LIVERPOOL: Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp says he has no concerns about Mohamed Salah’s fitness ahead of their Champions League clash with Napoli.
Salah was an unused substitute in the 2-1 win at Crystal Palace on Saturday after missing training with an ankle problem.
“Mo Salah looks really good,” Klopp said at his pre-match press conference on Tuesday. “I’m not worried about it.”
Klopp also provided an update on the fitness of defender Joel Matip, who has been sidelined with a knee injury.
“Joel is improving but is some time away. There will be a scan this week and then we will see how it is.”
Klopp said he had plans to cope with Liverpool’s fixture pile-up over the next few weeks.
Their involvement in the FIFA Club World Cup in Qatar, plus their progress in the League Cup, mean Liverpool have been forced to play two games within 24 hours of each other, over 4,000 miles (6,400 kilometers) apart in mid-December.
“We have plans for everything, as you can imagine, and we change them constantly. I have two smartphones and when one of them is ringing it is really rare it is good news,” said Klopp.
“You only get the messages when a player is not fine, so then we have to make new plans and we don’t know exactly how many players we’ll have to train.
“We know in the long term what we have to do, we know that’s all set. The athletic part of the sessions, we try to adapt to the specific situation of the players. The tactical things depend on the games we play.”
Victory over Carlo Ancelotti’s side on Wednesday would ensure defending champions Liverpool finish top of Group E with a game to spare but Klopp said he could not afford to look past the match.
Napoli are the only side to have beaten Liverpool this season but are currently seventh in Serie A.
“The biggest mistake we could make is that we have won it already and what would happen if we win it,” Klopp said.
“These things are not in our mind. Of course we try to win the game, it would be massive for us after the start we had. Napoli are a dangerous opponent.
“There are two weeks between tomorrow night and the Salzburg game (final match of the group) and we have three games in between. Why should I think about the Salzburg game now?“
Jurgen Klopp ‘not worried’ over Mohamed Salah fitness ahead of Napoli clash
Jurgen Klopp ‘not worried’ over Mohamed Salah fitness ahead of Napoli clash
- Salah was an unused substitute in the 2-1 win at Crystal Palace on Saturday
- Victory over Carlo Ancelotti’s side would ensure defending champions finish top of Group E
Bayern demolishes Wolfsburg 8-1 to go 11 points clear in Bundesliga
- Bayern hasn’t lost a Bundesliga game since March and remains the only unbeaten team in any of Europe’s five biggest leagues
Michael Olize scored twice as Bayern Munich started the new year by routing Wolfsburg 8-1 with six second-half goals to move 11 points clear at the top of the Bundesliga.
Olize, Harry Kane and Luis Díaz picked apart the Wolfsburg defense on Sunday in a display of dominance which leaves Bayern firmly on course to defend the title in only the 16th game of the 34-game season.
Bayern coach Vincent Kompany was pleased his players didn’t let up.
“It’s these moments where it’s five, six, 7-1, and they keep running, they keep pressing and keep trying to score goals,” he told broadcaster DAZN. “I have to say, I like that.”
In freezing temperatures for Bayern’s first game since the winter break, Olize got a brace and Kane and Díaz one apiece, along with goals for substitutes Raphael Guerreiro and Leon Goretzka, and two Wolfsburg own-goals.
Bayern only had two nervous moments all game. The first was Dzenan Pejcinovic’s goal for Wolfsburg in the 13th, which leveled the score at 1-1 after right back Konrad Laimer missed an interception.
The other was a brief injury scare for Kane, who needed treatment after being caught on the ankle by defender Moritz Jenz midway through the first half but was soon back in action.
It was Bayern’s biggest margin of victory in a Bundesliga game since Kompany took over ahead of the 2024-25 season. His team has scored a remarkable 63 goals in 16 league games this season, nearly four per game, and conceded only 12.
Bayern hasn’t lost a Bundesliga game since March and remains the only unbeaten team in any of Europe’s five biggest leagues. Wolfsburg is 14th, three points above the relegation zone, as a troubled season hits a new low.
Bayern’s closest rivals all had difficulties this weekend as second-place Borussia Dortmund drew 3-3 with Eintracht Frankfurt, Bayer Leverkusen lost 4-1 to Stuttgart and Leipzig’s game was postponed due to snow.
Wolfsburg’s American midfielder Kevin Paredes entered in the 77th minute, his first match this season after recovering from foot surgery in August.
Also Sunday, United States full back Joe Scally scored his first goal since 2023 as Borussia Moenchengladbach beat Augsburg 4-0. Gladbach moved up two places to 10th after winning at home for only the second time this season.
