A freak football incident and result: a devastating blow for Liverpool, one of the English Premier League 2023-24 title contenders. The Reds are already dealing with the absence of starting left-back, Andy Robertson (shoulder injury). Now, Kostas Tsimikas, a natural left-back, broke his collarbone on Saturday. And how, after a collision with boss Jurgen Klopp during their Anfield showdown against league leaders, Arsenal. (Football News)
Tsimikas, who joined Liverpool from Greek outfit Olympiacos in 2020, was challenged by Arsenal forward Bukayo Saka and stumbled into Klopp, who fell on top of him. The Greek defender will be out for a long time. Klopp did escape unscathed after the freak incident, which happened in the 35th minute of the keenly contested top-of-the-table clash. The match ended in a 1-1 draw, but the hosts were left picking up the pieces, metaphorically speaking.
"It was massively overshadowed by Kostas Tsimikas collarbone issue, definitely broken, so he is out for a long time," Klopp said after the match. "The other issues we will have to see. It is hard for us to swallow with the Robbo [Andy Robertson] situation."
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Watch how it unfolded here:
Mikel Arteta's Arsenal led after four minutes through Gabriel, who rose above the defensive line to connect a corner. Liverpool replied in the 29th when Mohamed Salah produced a sumptuous strike for his 151st Premier League goal. The Egyptian is now 10th on the list of the competition's all-time top scorers.
The result means that Arsenal stayed top of the standings, one point ahead of second-placed Liverpool. But a draw at Anfield also meant that defending champions Manchester City, who completed the club football set with the FIFA Club World Cup win a day earlier in Saudi Arabia, could catch up with both Arsenal and Liverpool, in the next few outings.
