Liverpool receive Ibrahima Konate injury hope as Conor Bradley timeline explained

An injury expert believes the issue Ibrahima Konate sustained against Real Madrid might not be as serious as it first looked, despite Arne Slot's concern. Conor Bradley could be a significant doubt for Liverpool's clash with Manchester City on Sunday due to his hamstring concern, though.

Bradley’s outstanding shift in Wednesday’s 2-0 win was curtailed due to a hamstring complaint sustained three minutes from the end. Konate was then forced to limp back to the changing rooms at full-time following what appears to be a knock to the knee following a collision with Endrick.

Speaking about the pair in Thursday's press conference, head coach Slot said: "Conor we had to take him off an Ibou didn't walk off the pitch as he should after the fantastic game he played. Not a good sign. They are still being assessed, I can't tell you exactly where they are this weekend and after that."

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Bradley - who grabbed his first assist of the season for Alexis Mac Allister’s opener - was seen walking around the pitch after the game. However, in both his and Konate’s case, injury analyst Ben Dinnery says not much should be read into their post-match activity.

“It’s very early days but my understanding with Bradley is certainly reports of a hamstring issue, a little bit of tightness in there,” Dinnery, of Premier Injuries, told the ECHO. “The hope, in best case scenario, would be that it is just that - a little bit of discomfort and there are no tears.

“Post-match is very difficult [to assess], particularly when you're coming off the back of a Champions League game when everybody's pumped and adrenaline is high. You'll want to wait until the cold light of day to assess that and, to be sure, go for a scan anyway.

“What I would always say typically with a hamstring problem, you almost fear the worst. And if anything comes back and it's a positive, then it's a big bonus.”

Dinnery pointed to the proximity of Sunday’s huge match against Manchester City, just three days away, as something that the Liverpool medical team will be mindful of. “The concern would be that if you go into that game with that tightness, there's the risk there of maybe exacerbating the problem,” he added.

“And then you're talking about weeks potentially on the sidelines and you're coming into a very busy festive period. So for me it's probably one Arne Slot will not want to take [a risk with].”

As for Konate, Dinnery believes his impact injury might be a problem that eases as time goes on, despite first impressions. However, he warned that more severe cases of his issue can actually swing the other way.

He explained: “For Ibrahima Konate I understand that that was a knock to the knee - the obvious perception would be that it's more positive in terms of a [body part] mechanism. Yes, sometimes in the moment you see it can be very painful.

“But if it's an impact injury, then you would have a little bit more confidence and optimism that maybe with a little bit of treatment [he will be fit]. But that’s not to say over the next sort of 24 to 48 hours his problem might actually begin to grow and become more of an issue.

“But Conor Bradley would be my serious major doubt, and I would certainly give Konate more of a chance. But I echo the sentiments that I said with regards to Conor Bradley.”

Ben Dinnery was speaking to the Liverpool ECHO courtesy of TG Casino.