Day 1 in Spain
The 27-man Liverpool squad have enjoyed the first day of their training camp in Spain. Although the weather was more overcast than when they arrived on Wednesday, a morning and afternoon session went ahead. Klopp and his players made the 1km journey between the hotel and football complex by bike. The training sessions took place behind closed doors, but several players and the manager stopped to sign autographs before returning to the hotel. Daniel Sturridge was absent from the first of training after he was advised by medical staff to stay at the team hotel.
Lovren and Grujic set for return
Dejan Lovren and Marko Grujic are both expected to return to first team training after the squad return from their mid-season break. Lovren has been out for just over two weeks with a knee injury, while Grujic has been side-lined for three months thanks to a hamstring tendon problem. Both players missed the training camp in Spain in order to continue rehabilitation at the Melwood facility. Klopp has issued positive news though, and has said that both players have been making good progress and could be back at training next week.
Hart won’t be sold to rivals
Manchester City appear to be keen to offload goalkeeper Joe Hart, but reports say that they won’t be willing to sell to Liverpool. The Reds have been strongly linked with the Englishman, after both Mignolet and Karius have failed to perform consistently, and were rumoured to make a move come the summer window. However, any bid will apparently be turned down by City, who have cut the price tag down to £15million, as they are not prepared to sell to Premier League rivals.
Brannagan could leave in the summer
Youngster Cameron Brannagan could leave Anfield on a permanent deal in the summer window, following a loan spell at Fleetwood Town. The 20-year-old joined the League 1 outfit in January for the remainder of the season, after not featuring in a first team squad for the whole of the first half of the 2016/17 campaign. Brannagan was given chances last year, but has since fallen down the pecking order and a number of teams, including Wigan and Bolton, have registered interest. The talented midfielder is a hot prospect for the future and a permanent move away from Liverpool could be best for his career.
Dahoud off the radar
Mahmoud Dahoud was a target for Liverpool last summer, but the interest has reportedly dropped off. The midfielder was heavily linked with a move to Merseyside, but the Liverpool Echo is now reporting that no deal is likely to go ahead. Reporter, James Pearce has stated, “Liverpool were very keen last summer but Monchengladbach didn’t want to sell. Since then I’ve not heard Dahoud mentioned.”
