Despite dispatching Newcastle United by a relatively emphatic scoreline yesterday, Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers has a number of concerns heading into this weekend’s FA Cup semi-final meeting with Aston Villa with the fitness of star striker Daniel Sturridge still in question.
The 25-year old, who has already missed a large swathe of the season dealing with various muscle ailments, sat out yesterday’s 2-0 victory over the Magpies following a recurrence of a hip problem — quite possibly the same one that ultimately forced him out of England duty — picked up in the closing stages of the narrow win over Championship side Blackburn Rovers on Wednesday. The Northern Irishman hinted in the build-up to yesterday’s match that the forward would be sidelined by saying that he wouldn’t be fully fit until next season, but now questions remain over whether we’ll see him run out at Wembley on Sunday or not.
When asked about his injury woes, in typical fashion, the Reds boss wasn’t giving anything away. “By the middle of the week we’ll have a good indication of where he’s at,” he told the press at Anfield yesterday. “I’ll probably know more in the week. He said he feels reasonably fine.”
While you can flip a coin on Sturridge, Liverpool are certain to be without the services of Mamadou Sakho after the defender was ruled out for up to a month with a hamstring injury picked up in the opening stages of the same match. Along with that pair, Rodgers could also be without the services of Mario Balotelli with the striker’s ongoing issues with illness keeping him out of the squad that beat the Magpies on Monday. “He wasn’t quite fit enough for Newcastle,” confirmed the Reds manager. “He’s had on and off sickness issues. Hopefully he’ll train in the middle of the week.”
