Cody Gakpo fitness boost ahead of Merseyside derby

Cody Gakpo took part in Liverpool's team training on Thursday, ahead of the weekend's Merseyside derby.

The 24-year-old forward suffered a knee injury during the Reds' 2-1 defeat at Tottenham last month and left the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium with his leg in a brace, provoking fears of serious damage.

Jurgen Klopp even called Gakpo's knock the 'biggest problem' of the highly contentious game.

However, despite having to skip national team duty with the Netherlands during the October fixtures, Klopp has since played down concerns that Gakpo's injury is a severe one.

Speaking about his number 18 before the international break, the manager revealed: "He is already out of the brace, walks normal around, so from all the very, very bad opportunities and possibilities injury-wise, I think he nearly got the best but is still injured."

It has been predicted that Gakpo could return to action against Everton on Saturday.

Those hopes got a boost on Thursday when the Dutchman was shown taking part in training with the first-team in footage broadcast on Sky Sports.

How close he is to match readiness, however, remains to be seen, with fans eagerly awaiting Klopp's updates in Friday's press conference.

While rushing Gakpo back into contention would be a major risk, there are concerns about the availability of Liverpool's attackers ahead of the derby.

Darwin Nuñez and Luis Diaz both played the full 90 minutes of their World Cup qualifiers with Uruguay and Colombia in the early hours of Wednesday morning and are doubts to feature from the start in yet another early Saturday kick-off for Liverpool.

Diogo Jota, however, is back from his one-match suspension and should start alongside Mohamed Salah in attack. However, with Ben Doak also picking up a knock with the Scotland Under-21 side during the break, the third spot could prove a selection headache for Klopp.

Gakpo's return to fitness would be a timely boost.

READ MORE: Liverpool vs Everton – Predicted Starting XI

Meanwhile, Andy Robertson will miss the game – and potentially many others – as fears continue to grow over his shoulder injury.

Thiago Alcantara, Stefan Bajcetic and Caoimhin Kelleher are the Reds' other fitness doubts.