Klopp: Absolutely no rush on Coutinho return

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is adamant the hectic festive schedule will not pressure him into bringing back Philippe Coutinho early from injury.

The Brazil international has been a key cog in the Reds’ machine this season, scoring five times in the Premier League and contributing five assists, but injured his ankle against Sunderland in November.

And despite some hopes that Coutinho might be back in time for Liverpool’s clash with Manchester City on New Year’s Eve, with no sign of the 24-year-old number ten back back in training at Melwood just yet, Klopp insists he is in no rush.

“Unfortunately, we don’t have him back in training,” he said.

“He makes his training – that’s a big difference. Until we have him in training, there’s absolutely no reason to think about when he is back.

“We cannot rush the situation and we don’t want to rush it. We have to accept the more or less bigger steps in his improvement with this serious injury.

“It was not [just] ‘something’. It was a decent injury and is still, so we need to wait.

“Whenever he is back, the season is long enough that he can help us. We cannot rush it just because there are a few games now. That cannot have an influence on our decisions.”