Jurgen Klopp gives bizarre reason for Naby Keita neck injury
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has explained why Naby Keita will not feature against Manchester United in the International Champions Cup tonight.
Midfielder Keita has been forced to sit out training for the “next couple of days” after complaining of a stiff neck.
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The new £52million arrival also missed out on the International Champions Cup win over Manchester City earlier this week, and will not play in the tour ending clash at Michigan Stadium.
The reason? Klopp admitted the problem was sustained on the eight hour flight over America but is “not serious” which is a positive going into next week’s training camp in France.
In Friday’s press conference Klopp said, “It’s really only a stiff neck, but the eight hours on the plane with the air conditioning… it was quite comfortable but obviously not comfortable enough for him! Since then it’s getting better, absolutely.
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“If somebody tells me overnight it’s now perfect, then we will use him. But I don’t know it in the moment, that’s all. It’s not serious. We’ve all had a stiff neck – sometimes it’s gone overnight and sometimes not. In this case obviously not.”
Keita has already seen action in Liverpool’s midfield with some impressive early outings against Chester, Blackburn Rovers and Borussia Dortmund.