Liverpool forward Diogo Jota suffered a serious injury on Sunday, and his manager Jurgen Klopp has explained how it affected him to see him using crutches.
Jota was outstanding against Manchester City on Sunday but could now be ruled out with a ‘serious’ calf injury.
Speaking on Friday, before Liverpool’s Premier Lagu trip to Southampton, Klopp provided more information on the condition of Diogo’s injury.
“Not good news with Diogo, yes he will miss the World Cup. Pretty serious injury in the muscle, calf muscle. Now the recovery starts, or the process starts, let me say it like this.” Klopp said.
“That’s it pretty much, that’s the first diagnosis, which was pretty clear. All the rest will follow in the next few ddays” Klopp added.
The Portuguese winger went down in the ninth minute of stoppage time at Anfield, and Klopp admitted early signs from Jota suggest the injury is bad.
“When I saw him yesterday on crutches, and he wanted to shake my hand, I had to give him a hug.” Klopp said.
“I said, ‘It’s more for me than you, to be honest’, because it’s a shame, the whole thing. How it happened, when it happened, that it happened, all these kinds of things.
“But he is incredibly strong. It’s unbelievable. He is a role model in that. He really takes it like it is. ‘You cannot change it anymore, so let’s work from here’.” Klopp added.
After missing the first few weeks of the season with a hamstring injury, Diogo, who has scored 10 goals in 29 appearances for Portugal, has just recently returned to full fitness.
“So yes, we support as him as much as we can. But we all know, and we were involved in professional football, especially as a player, how lonesome rehab phases can be anyway, because you spend a lot of time at the training ground for your rehab but then all the other time is still long, when you are at home.” Klopp said.
