Liverpool suffered another injury setback on Wednesday night, adding to their concerns ahead of Sunday's crucial clash with Manchester City. Conor Bradley was forced off late in the match with a muscle injury, having only replaced Trent Alexander-Arnold in the 66th minute of the Reds’ 2-2 draw with Aston Villa.

The severity of Bradley’s injury remains uncertain, but head coach Arne Slot confirmed in his pre-match press conference that he does not expect the Northern Ireland international to feature against either Manchester City or Newcastle United in midweek.

“Conor still has to come in,” Slot stated on Thursday morning. “We don’t know yet.

“I would be completely surprised if he was involved in the Sunday game or the Wednesday game against Newcastle. You can assume that’s not going to happen.”

Bradley’s absence further exacerbates Liverpool’s defensive concerns, particularly after Slot confirmed that Joe Gomez has undergone surgery on a hamstring injury and will be sidelined until the final weeks of the season.

This leaves the Reds without a natural backup for vice-captain Alexander-Arnold, who Slot has been carefully managing following his recent return from injury. The Dutchman explained that Alexander-Arnold’s withdrawal against Aston Villa was pre-planned as part of a structured approach to navigating Liverpool’s demanding schedule of five matches in 15 days.

However, with Bradley now unavailable, Slot admitted that the original plan may need to be reassessed.

“In these five games, he already knows how many minutes he would play,” Slot explained. “That was in a situation where Conor was available as well. Now maybe we have to adjust our plan.”

Liverpool are also monitoring Diogo Jota’s workload following his own recent return from injury, with Slot emphasising the importance of keeping the Portuguese forward fit for the remainder of the season.

While both Alexander-Arnold and Jota remain available for the trip to Manchester, concerns persist over Cody Gakpo’s fitness. The Dutch forward sustained a knock during last week’s Merseyside derby at Goodison Park and has missed Liverpool’s last two matches as a result.

Gakpo had yet to return to full training as of Thursday morning, and Slot acknowledged that his availability for Sunday’s fixture remains uncertain.

“Let’s see, let’s see. I hope he is available,” Slot said. “I’m not 100% sure because he hasn’t trained with the team yet. Maybe he does a bit today, I don’t know exactly. It will be a close call.”

Additionally, Liverpool will be without Tyler Morton, who recently underwent surgery on a shoulder injury.