Liverpools Andy Robertson out for three months after surgery on right shoulder injury
Andy Robertson is set to be sidelined for around three months as the Liverpool left-back prepares to undergo shoulder surgery.
The Scotland captain was hurt in last week’s Euro 2024 qualifying defeat to Spain following a challenge with goalkeeper Unai Simon.
Robertson, who dislocated his right shoulder, returned to Liverpool to discuss the best course of action with club medical staff and specialists.
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Without surgery, he could have been back playing within four weeks but that would have carried a significant risk of it happening again.
Instead, it was felt that the most sensible and responsible decision was for him to have an operation which will lead to around 10 to 12 weeks out. The surgery is expected to take place early next week.
“Talking to pretty much all the experts it looks like surgery will be the best thing, especially in the long term, and that means he is out for a while,” manager Jurgen Klopp confirmed.
“In my experience, you can train pretty quickly again but not football-specific so because you have to be careful of challenges and all these kind of things.”
It means Robertson is unlikely to play again until 2024 and will be missing for crunch Premier League matches against Manchester City, Manchester United and Arsenal.
The 29-year-old, who has been ever-present in the Premier League so far this season, has clocked up 275 appearances for Liverpool since his £8million (now $9.7m) move from Hull City in 2017 and this will be the longest absence of his Anfield career.
Greece international Kostas Tsimikas is set to deputise at left-back — starting with Saturday’s Merseyside derby — while centre-back Joe Gomez has also played there previously.
Other options for Klopp in that department over the coming months include youngsters Luke Chambers and Calum Scanlon. Chambers left the England Under-19s squad last week after turning his ankle, but Scanlon has trained with Klopp’s squad this week.
Thiago, Stefan Bajcetic and Ben Doak, meanwhile, are sidelined by injury but Cody Gakpo is back in contention after recovering from a knee problem. “Cody trained once with the team so far so we will have to see how that goes,” Klopp said.
GO DEEPER
Liverpool are now relying on Tsimikas - so what does he offer?
Analysis by Andy Jones and Thomas Harris
The 27-year-old has proven to be a capable backup to Robertson since arriving from Olympiacos in 2020, even if his chances have been limited to 18 Premier League starts. He is well-liked in the dressing room and earned cult-hero status among fans when he scored the winning penalty in the 2022 FA Cup final shootout against Chelsea.
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Tsimikas has never started more than two league games in a row, a testament to Robertson’s form and fitness, and the concern for Klopp will be that the Greek international – who signed a new four-year contract last month – has lacked rhythm in his three starts in all competitions this campaign.
Much has been made of the change in Robertson’s role since Liverpool changed to the 3-box-3 system. It may ask him to ignore his attacking instincts on occasion, but he has grown in comfort and confidence. He is a solid defender who has to be more selective picking his moments to get forward.
Klopp’s classic 4-3-3, which required creativity to primarily come from his full-backs, suited Tsimikas; the 3-box-3 system does not. In the only Premier League game Tsimikas has started since Klopp’s formation switch, Liverpool conceded four to relegated Southampton – although none of the goals were necessarily his fault.
We still do not have a true answer to whether Tsimikas can adapt his game in the way Robertson did. There is more defensive responsibility required because in possession the left-back becomes the third centre-back. He cannot gallop forward at will, either.
(Photo: George Wood/Getty Images)
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