Liverpool defender Kostas Tsimikas has dropped an injury hint before their impending Carabao Cup quarter-final against Southampton. The 28-year-old has been nursing a foot injury and hasn't featured for the Reds since a 4-0 win over Bayer Leverkusen - in the revamped Champions League - last month.

Tsimikas' last taste of competitive action was for Greece, in mid-November, while he was spotted on crutches and wearing a protective boot when Liverpool defeated Manchester City at the beginning of December. However, the Greece international has since made his return to first-team training - after head coach Arne Slot made the surprise revelation during Tuesday's press conference.

The left-back also posted on social media hours before the Reds went head-to-head with the managerless Saints. Liverpool continue their trophy defence on the south coast, after navigating their way past West Ham United and Brighton & Hove Albion so far in this season's competition.

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As is usual in modern football, players take to their respective platforms to post graphics - or videos - in the build-up to matches. Needless to say, that could just be someone running their accounts for them, posting regardless of whether they are going to be involved or not.

The Dutchman noted that there would be some changes to his starting XI, with Andy Robertson joining the list of absentees through suspension. Slot has, also, been keen to manage the minutes of the back-line following injuries to Conor Bradley, Ibrahima Konate and Trent Alexander-Arnold in recent weeks.

The England international recently returned to the fold after an injury issue of his own, replacing Bradley who suffered a muscle problem after his standout display against Real Madrid. Kostas is coming close," Slot said on Tuesday. "He's going to be training with us today, maybe for the first time, so let's see how that works out."

That comes only four days after the Liverpool head coach revealed that the left-back has made his first positive steps in his recovery. Slot said: "When players are back on the grass, still [for] playing time, sometimes, there is a little bit of time in between that.

"But I can't say exactly how long because not every player reacts in the same way. Some players are earlier back with the same injury and some players need a little bit more time."