Liverpool vs West Ham United - Liverpool facing another wait for Daniel Sturridge - 7M sport

Liverpool vs West Ham United - Liverpool facing another wait for Daniel Sturridge



Posted Saturday, December 10, 2016 by PA

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp admits he does not know when striker Daniel Sturridge will be fit to return.

The England international has not played since November 19 because of a calf problem and will miss Sunday's clash with West Ham.

Klopp will put no timescale on when the 27-year-old will be ready to come back - which is an issue considering Danny Ings has been ruled out for the rest of the season with knee ligament damage and Philippe Coutinho is out until the new year with an ankle injury.

"I have no idea when he will be back," said Klopp.

Asked what he could do about it, the German added: "Nothing. Wait. That is my job. That is the life of football. You cannot force things like this. It is not important what the name of the player is or the quality of the player, you have to wait until they are back."

Sturridge has made just 11 appearances this season, six as substitute, and his only goals have come in the EFL Cup with two apiece against Burton and Tottenham.

The latest problem is his 22nd injury since arriving on Merseyside in January 2013. Sturridge made just 14 Premier League appearances last season and only 12 in the 2014/15 campaign and has never made a league start for Liverpool in the month of December.

One player who will be in the side for the visit of West Ham will be goalkeeper Loris Karius, despite criticism being levelled at him for errors in the 4-3 defeat at Bournemouth last weekend.

The Hammers entered this weekend sitting just one point above the relegation zone, following the 5-1 home defeat to Arsenal last time out.

Manager Slaven Bilic tore into his players after that game, but told the Evening Standard on Friday: "My comments after the Arsenal match, about us losing our intensity in training, have provoked some reaction, as I expected. I spoke honestly, as I always try to do and I am not one for making excuses, because the fans can always see through that.

"I would take this opportunity for the first time since then to make one thing clear, though: when I talked about the loss of intensity, some people thought I was pointing a finger at my staff.

"That was wrong. I think I said, four or five times, that it is me and it is my job to take responsibility. Believe me, we're not having a jolly-up in training... it's not like that."

West Ham have been struggling with a number of injuries with Diafra Sakho (hamstring), Reece Oxford (ankle), Cheikhou Kouyate (groin) and Sam Byram (hamstring) on the sidelines.

Those concerns are starting to ease as striker Andy Carroll played his first game since August last weekend, and wing-backs Michail Antonio and Aaron Cresswell return from short lay-offs for Sunday's game.



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