Alisson set to miss potentially season-defining Liverpool clashes as length of injury lay-off revealed

Liverpool have been dealt a crucial injury blow with goalkeeper Alisson Becker expected to miss six weeks of football.

The Brazil No.1 came off injured during a 1-0 Champions League defeat to Galatasaray in the 56th minute having just made a stellar stop on goalscorer Victor Osimhen.

He was replaced by highly-rated summer signing Giorgi Mamardashvili, which should ease some fears, but Alisson has arguably been the Reds stand-out player this term.

Such a timeline means that the keeper would miss an incredibly crucial run of fixtures through October and November.

Liverpool play eight times during that period, with two of those games in the Premier League against rivals Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea.

They also have two Champions League matches, including a showdown at Anfield with record European champions Real Madrid.

In the Carabao Cup, Arne Slot's men face Crystal Palace, a team Liverpool have lost to twice already this season.

Reacting to the news, Ally McCoist said: “That’s a blow. I think he’s the best goalkeeper out of all of them, so that will be a blow.

"I think him and Virgil van Dijk are the two players they can’t do without.

"Mo Salah is obviously out of this world, one of the best players on the planet, but I think Van Dijk and the goalkeeper are vital for them."

Liverpool also lost another candidate for player of the season so far, Hugo Ekitike, and Slot addressed both issues post match.

"It's never positive if you go off like this. You can be sure he [Alisson] is not playing Saturday [against Chelsea].

"I wasn't really thinking that we had an injury, but Hugo felt something.

"He said he couldn't continue, so we had to take him off. Let's see how he is for the weekend."

The news comes at a bad time for Liverpool who have just lost back-to-back games for the first time under Premier League winning manager Slot.

Before defeat away in Turkey they fell 2-1 at Selhurst Park against Crystal Palace who have proved to be somewhat of a bogey team, particularly under Oliver Glasner.

The absence will be a test of Liverpool's scouts, given their signing of the hugely-rated Mamardashvili.

The Georgian was signed from Valencia last summer for £25million, which was seen as a snip given his reputation on the international stage.

He spent the 2024/25 season in Spain before arriving this summer, and has so far featured in two matches, a 2-1 League Cup win over Southampton before 34 minutes against Galatasaray without conceding.

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