Liverpool striker Diogo Jota will be out for longer than initially anticipated, manager Arne Slot confirmed. Jota suffered an upper-body injury after a collision with Chelsea defender Tosin Adarabioyo during Liverpool’s 2-1 victory on October 20.
The injury was expected to sideline Jota until after the upcoming international break, which would have allowed him to return for Liverpool’s match against Southampton on November 24. However, Slot revealed that Jota’s recovery will take longer, and he is now expected to be back one to two weeks after the international break. This means he will likely miss crucial matches against Real Madrid and Manchester City at the end of November.
Jota’s absence has forced Slot to experiment with different attacking options. Darwin Nunez has started in the center forward position in recent games, scoring the winning goal against RB Leipzig. Luis Diaz also impressed with a hat-trick when starting centrally in the 4-0 win against Bayer Leverkusen. Slot even opted to play without a recognized striker in Liverpool’s League Cup victory over Brighton.
In addition to Jota, Alisson Becker, Harvey Elliott, and Federico Chiesa are all expected to return after the international break, though no specific dates have been given for their comebacks.
