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Liverpool were delivered more bad injury news ahead of their weekend trip to Sheffield United in the Premier League.
Captain Jordan Henderson limped out of the Merseyside derby last weekend after just 30 minutes.
The 30-year-old had been filling in as a makeshift centre-back and his injury further exacerbated the Reds’ problems at the back.
Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip have all been sidelined for lengthy periods of time.
Henderson and Fabinho, two midfielders, had been filling the void but both have also been struggling with injuries.
The club captain, though, has required surgery on an adductor injury and will be out for a number of weeks.
He will not return until at least after the March international break but Liverpool gave no timescale on his return.
It is another blow for Jurgen Klopp as the Reds have struggled to mount a title defence and may not even finish in the top four.
They are currently sixth and 19 points behind leaders Man City.
The shred of good news is that forward Diogo Jota has returned to full training and could be in contention for the startling line-up soon.
“Diogo trained now twice with the team, looks very good – very good. But [he] was out long term so we have to see what we can do with that. But in training he looks really promising,” said Klopp at his pre-match press conference.
How Liverpool should look against Sheffield United
Jota only signed for Liverpool in the summer but his absence has been sorely missed.
His five Premier League goals in just nine appearances, five of them starts, added a spark to the team that has been missing in recent weeks and may be given a 60 minute run to improve his fitness, especially with a game against Chelsea on the horizon.
Roberto Firmino is the likeliest candidate to miss out as the striker has just six Premier League goals this season. He has just one in his last 11 games.
The injuries in defence have also diminished the options in midfield with Henderson and Fabinho both unavailable.
Gini Wijnaldum, Thiago and Curtis Jones remain the main men in the middle, although James Milner is set to return soon too.
Ozan Kabak is likely to partner Fabinho, who is returning from injury, while the usual full-backs of Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold will be in front of Alisson.
There could be a question mark over whether Alisson will play following the unexpected death of his father this week.
Adrian is likely to take his place should the goalkeeper be unable to play.
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