Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain ruled out of World Cup with knee injury sustained in Liverpool win over Roma

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain will miss the rest of Liverpool's season and will play no part with England at this summer’s World Cup after suffering a knee ligament injury.

The 24-year-old was stretchered off in the 18th minute of Liverpool’s 5-2 Champions League semi-final victory against Roma on Tuesday night after making a strong challenge on Aleksandar Kolarov.

Oxlade-Chamberlain underwent a scan at Melwood on Wednesday and though a timeframe has not been set for his return, the midfielder will only play club football again next season. England manager Gareth Southgate will also be unable to call upon his services in Russia.

A statement on Liverpool’s official website read: “Liverpool FC can confirm Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s 2017-18 season is over for both club and country due to a knee ligament injury sustained against AS Roma on Tuesday evening.

“The 24-year-old was assessed by the club’s medical team at Melwood on Wednesday morning and no specific timescale is being placed upon his return to action at this stage.

“However, Oxlade-Chamberlain will now begin a rehabilitation programme to enable him to reach full fitness again as soon as possible, returning to action next season.”

Jürgen Klopp, the Liverpool manager, described Oxlade-Chamberlain’s problem as a “really bad injury” after the final whistle on Tuesday, and preferred to concentrate on the consequences of losing an in-form player than Roma’s two late away goals.

“The biggest blow for the mood is the injury of Chamberlain because we lost a fantastic player. I am a very positive person and hope it only feels bad but all the medical department are quite concerned without a scan,” he said at the time.

“We have still a few very important games to go and the squad doesn’t get bigger in the moment, so we obviously need to be creative in the next few games.”