Liverpool’s 2-1 victory at Brentford was overshadowed by injuries to Dominik Szoboszlai and Jeremie Frimpong, with Andoni Iraola confirming both players will be unavailable for “some time”.
Liverpool recovered from a difficult situation to complete a second-half comeback at the Gtech Community Stadium, winning through goals from Victor Munoz and Alexander Isak.
However, Szoboszlai’s return from a hamstring problem lasted only 30 minutes before he was forced off. Frimpong then suffered an injury just seven minutes after coming on as a substitute.
Iraola said the two setbacks were different, but confirmed neither player would be available in the short term.
“I think we have a very delicate situation,” Iraola said. “We were coming from playing Champions League away two days ago, we arrived [home] late at night and probably with not a proper recovery.
“You are in doubt between the players that have already started two games and are very tired, or the players that are recovering from injuries but you’re probably not 100 per cent certain.”
He said Szoboszlai had aggravated the same problem rather than sustained a new injury.
“They were different cases. Dom felt the same injury, it’s not a new injury and was probably not healed enough, so we will need more time with him,” he added.
Frimpong’s issue was new, although Iraola suggested it may have been connected to the fatigue he experienced in Liverpool’s previous match against LASK.
“Jeremie’s was new, I think he finished cramping the other day [against LASK],” said Iraola. “I put him on because playing against 10, going forward I thought he could give us more than Ronald [Araujo].”
Victor Munoz subsequently impressed after being moved to right-back, but Iraola acknowledged the cost of the victory.
“After, I value a lot and he was very good, Victor playing as a right-back. But it will mean we will lose Dom and Jeremie for some time, yes.”
Despite the injuries, the result moved Liverpool above Brentford and into fifth place in the Premier League table.
Their next fixture is in the Champions League, with Villarreal visiting on Tuesday. Iraola was pleased with much of Liverpool’s performance but felt they failed to manage the closing stages properly after taking a 2-1 lead.
“I think we played really well until the 2-1,” Iraola told Sky Sports. “After that we started to protect something, I think we didn’t manage the last minutes well.
“I think some of the players were seeing quite clear chances to finish the game that we haven’t been able to finish. We lacked some composure on the ball. Sometimes it was just about keeping the ball more and not going for the goal with the first chance.”
