It seemed almost a too convienient excuse to say that Liverpool defender Mamadou Sakho was injured in the wake of his poor decision to leave Anfield prior to their meeting with crosstown rivals Everton after not being selected for the match-day squad, but as the weeks passed without seeing hide nor (crazy) hair of the Frenchman, it now appears that he is, in fact, injured.
Heading into the meeting with Swansea City in the League Cup later today, Reds assistant boss Colin Pascoe has not only confirmed that Sakho is still struggling with his thigh injury and that he suffered a set-back in training, but that it would be a few weeks until the 24-year old would be fit enough to return to the side.
“He’s progressing well. He was unfortunate – he came back in and picked up a similar injury” said Pascoe when asked about Liverpool’s defensive options when they host the Swans at Anfield. “It will be another couple of weeks for Mamadou and then hopefully he’ll be back as soon as he’s fit and raring to go, he’s available.”
Liverpool’s defensive woes have been well documented with the center-halves in particular coming under fire. Before the scoreless draw against Hull City on Saturday, the Anfield outfit had kept only a solitary clean sheet over a run of 18-matches — a trend that’s nothing short of disturbing. While Sakho has certainly played a part in that dire statistic, at this point, Reds boss Brendan Rodgers could turn to the Frenchman once he’s fit to help stop the rot.
