Jurgen Klopp reveals Virgil van Dijk fitness blow – and chances of return

Jurgen Klopp has revealed that Virgil van Dijk is a doubt for Sunday’s clash with Tottenham at Anfield, having yet to train for “the whole week” in the buildup.

The Reds return to Anfield this weekend for the first time in three weeks, with four away trips since the 1-0 loss to Crystal Palace on April 14.

Van Dijk is expected to miss out, however, with the captain yet to take part in team training and doubtful to be involved in a full session prior to kickoff.

Asked about the fitness of Diogo Jota and Conor Bradley – the latter of whom was pictured with the squad on Thursday – Klopp revealed a setback for Van Dijk.

“Diogo is not in team training yet. Conor is,” the manager explained.

“Virgil wasn’t [for] the whole week yet.

“Probably parts of parts of team training today, so we have to see what we can do there. That’s it.”

If Van Dijk misses out, Klopp is likely to turn to a pairing of Ibrahima Konate and Jarell Quansah against Tottenham, though Joe Gomez is another option.

This comes after a run of 10 consecutive starts for the Dutchman, who played the full 90 minutes in each game – and over two hours against Man United in the FA Cup – for a total of 15-and-a-half hours of football in 42 days.

Whether he was overplayed is a matter for the club’s Sports Science department, but it is notable that he was the only player not rested in that period.

Van Dijk will be eager to return to the fold as soon as possible, of course, with only three Games left this season – and, of course, Klopp’s reign in charge.