Clyne Faces Lengthy Spell On The Sidelines

By Joshua Walters

Liverpool defender Nathaniel Clyne is set to be on the sidelines for close to nine months after suffering anterior cruciate ligament injury in a pre-season friendly against Dortmund.

The full-back lost his position at the right-back to in-form Trent Alexander-Arnold as he went on loan to Bournemouth last season.

After being considered as a prime target by Crystal Palace as a successor for departed Aaron Wan-Bissaka to Manchester United, Clyne’s potential move to the Selhurst Park seems to be in the air.

After the game, Jurgen Klopp expressed his disgust to the injury suffered by the 28-year-old versatile defender.

“What can I say other than how gutted we all are for Clyney. He was training and playing so well - he was in outstanding shape.

“Clearly an injury of this nature isn't a happy moment for any player, but the silver lining for him is that, according to the medical guys, it's a straightforward ACL injury. This means fixing it and coming back from it should follow a path that is free from pitfalls and complications.

“At the moment there isn't much more to say beyond we'll all support Clyney in whatever way we can and we look forward to seeing him back on the pitch as soon as responsibly possible.

“He is such a sound professional and is naturally very fit and strong, so all these things are in his favour.”

Liverpool secured Clyne’s services from Southampton in 2015 for a fee of £12.5 million on a five-year contract.

Missing the Reds final pre-season game against Portuguese side Sporting Lisbon in New York, Clyne flew back to England to begin with his long recovery process.