Jurgen Klopp admits he played Diogo Jota against medical advice

Jurgen Klopp reveals Diogo Jota only trained twice before making his injury return in Liverpool's 2-0 win against Burnley on Boxing Day.

The 27-year-old came on as a late second-half substitute and showed his class immediately as he got his name on the scoresheet with a goal from a tight angle in stoppage time. Jota latched onto a backheel from Luis Diaz and slammed the ball into the back of the net with his left foot as Burnley goalkeeper James Trafford was finally beaten after a string of impressive saves.

Speaking after the game at a press conference, Klopp admitted he played Jota against medical advice, adding that he expects the Portuguese international to be fully fit for the Premier League clash against Newcastle United on New Year's Day.

Klopp said: "We sneaked him in somehow on the squad list because he trained only twice and the medical department wanted to give him extra training and I said, ‘he can have that in Burnley. He had that tonight and now he can train tomorrow properly and then he will be ready for Newcastle, which is really helpful.”

Jota missed eight games across all competitions for Liverpool after suffering a hamstring injury against Manchester City and was a surprise inclusion in the matchday squad against Burnley. With Mohamed Salah set to represent Egypt at the 2024 Africa Cup of Nations and the likes of Cody Gakpo, Darwin Nunez and Luis Diaz misfiring in front of goal, Jota's return is a welcome boost for Klopp.

The 27-year-old has scored nine goals in just under 1000 minutes of football this season and his form could be crucial to Liverpool's Premier League title hopes.