Saturday 8 April 2017 09:19, UK
Liverpool forward Sadio Mane has been ruled out for the remainder of the season and will undergo knee surgery, manager Jurgen Klopp has confirmed.
The Senegal international sustained the injury in the 3-1 victory over Merseyside rivals Everton at Anfield on Saturday and was replaced in the 57th minute by Divock Origi.
Earlier this week, Mane posted a picture of himself on social media wearing a knee brace and Klopp has admitted the 24-year-old will not feature again this campaign.
Mane has scored 13 goals since joining Liverpool from Southampton for £34m last summer.
"We're pretty sure he will require surgery, we're not sure when that will be, but it's clear his season is over," the Liverpool boss said.
"It will be pretty much impossible for him to play again this season. He'll have a long break until next season.
"That's what I expected. I thought he was lucky not more happened. He will be ready for the next season. That's the only good news."
However, Klopp is hopeful Philippe Coutinho will be fit to feature in Liverpool's match away at Stoke on Saturday.
The Brazil midfielder opened the scoring in the 2-2 draw with Bournemouth at Anfield on Wednesday, but was replaced in the 65th due to sickness and has not trained for the past two days.
"Phil is still ill. He was not at Melwood today or yesterday. He feels much better. We will give him all the time he needs," Klopp said.
"We will have to see about him. We will give him all the time. He will be really close."
Klopp revealed he would still be without Adam Lallana and Jordan Henderson for the trip to the Bet365 Stadium as Liverpool attempt to consolidate their position in the top four.
Lallana has not featured for third-placed Liverpool since the 1-1 draw with Manchester City on March 19 because of a thigh injury picked up on international duty, while captain Henderson has been out since February due to an ongoing foot problem.
"Adam Lallana is much better but he's not an option yet. We are going to need a few more days before we can have him back on the pitch," Klopp said.
"The problem with this is that the first few days with this injury, it's a shooting muscle. He feels nothing at the moment but we need a few more days.
"Hendo is in a good way but we don't know exactly when he will be part of training again."
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