The worst fears have been confirmed: Liverpool FC will have to manage without their number one for weeks. His replacement has the chance to show what he can do in what may be his last season with the Reds.
Liverpool’s strong start to the season will be put to the test twice after the international break: by the fixture schedule and the situation in goal. First-choice keeper Alisson, who is partly responsible for the fact that the Reds have only conceded two goals after seven matchdays, will be out for several weeks.
As numerous English media outlets have reported, the 32-year-old Brazilian national team keeper was diagnosed with a thigh injury that will require at least a six-week break. Alisson will not be fit to return to action until the end of November at the earliest.
This is a bitter blow for the Brazilian national team, which is under pressure in the World Cup qualifiers and will in all likelihood have to do without its number one in the November internationals as well. “Alisson is the best goalkeeper in the world,” said Arne Slot after the 1-0 win at Crystal Palace, where he had to replace his veteran in the 79th minute. For the Klopp successor, it is the first serious injury that he has had to deal with as Liverpool manager.
Until the next international break (from November 11), Liverpool face Chelsea, Arsenal, Brighton and Aston Villa in the Premier League after the comparatively easy start to the season, RB Leipzig and Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League, and Brighton again in the League Cup round of 16. After that, they face duels against ManCity (PL) and Real Madrid (CL), among others.
Kelleher is thinking of leaving in the summer
Once again, the focus is on substitute Caoimhin Kelleher. The 25-year-old had already played in 26 competitive games last season because Alisson was out several times – the longest of which was also with a thigh injury. Against Palace, however, the third goalkeeper, the Czech Viteszlav Jaros, had been brought on and made his Liverpool debut because Kelleher was absent through illness.
However, the 16-time Irish international has already deputized for Alisson twice this season – and “very well”, as Slot emphasized at the weekend. Nevertheless, Kelleher is openly considering leaving at the end of the season: his dream of becoming number one himself becomes even more unrealistic with the already confirmed signing of Giorgi Mamardashvili. “It seems they have decided to go in a different direction,” Kelleher said in September. His contract expires in 2026, so Alisson’s latest injury is perhaps his last chance to wear the Liverpool shirt again.