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Jurgen Klopp believes Jordan Henderson could feature in one of Liverpool’s upcoming Anfield friendlies against Athletic Club and Osasuna, having now returned to training.
The captain is not part of the Reds squad in Evian this week, having been granted an extended holiday following England’s journey to the final of Euro 2020.
Henderson’s absence comes amid speculation over his future, with contract talks having stalled earlier in the summer and Atletico Madrid among the clubs interested.
There is no suggestion that he is away from pre-season due to any transfer negotiations, but simply that he was allowed more time off ahead of the new campaign – though it is still a strange situation.
Speaking after Liverpool’s two friendly wins over Bologna on Thursday, Klopp confirmed that Henderson is back on Merseyside and in training, and could feature against either Athletic Club or – more likely – Osasuna.
“So Hendo obviously trained today in Liverpool. We will meet him on Saturday, then it’s all fine,” he told LFCTV.
“We will see if he plays a few minutes or not, really I didn’t think about it yet.
“If [so] then probably more likely in the second game [against Osasuna].”
Whether or not Henderson clocks any minutes on the pitch in the Anfield friendlies, it is highly unlikely he will be fit to start against Norwich in the Premier League opener on August 14.
The same could be said of Thiago, who missed the two clashes with Bologna with a minor injury that has kept him out of team training, while Fabinho has only played half an hour so far on his return from holiday.
It could be that the manager turns to the likes of Naby Keita and Harvey Elliott to flesh out his side, with his follow-up words showing his faith in the squad as a whole.
“If anybody’s worried that they chose the wrong game [to go to at Anfield], I couldn’t say which is team A and which is team B to be honest,” he continued.
“Today was the same, we have only good players here. That’s good. So both lineups will go for everything, all fine.”
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