Liverpool dealt MASSIVE injury blow as star ruled out of Everton derby

Liverpool will finally return to Premier League action on Wednesday night but Arne Slot has been dealt a major injury blow ahead of the game.

After a long hiatus, the Reds will be playing their first league game in close to a month - with the last being against Southampton back on March 8th.

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In that time, Slot's side suffered a disappointing defeat against Paris Saint Germain and an even more crushing blow against Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley.

Meanwhile, the last two weeks so most of the Reds' stars jet out to various corners of the world to fulfil their international duties.

But over the last week, they have started to return ahead of this game and Slot will be eager to bounce back with a big victory over the club's arch rivals in order to continue Liverpool's momentum in the league title.

However, his task will not be easy.

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Liverpool's Conor Bradley ruled out after suffering injury blow

There were high hopes Conor Bradley would be able to return to this game having been spotted back training last week.

With Trent Alexander-Arnold already ruled out, Liverpool's options in the right-back department are slim. Slot can use either Jarell Quansah or perhaps Wataru Endo in the role if Bradley is unavailable.

And it seems like that is what the Liverpool head coach will need to do at the derby on Wednesday night at Anfield.

According to James Pearce writing in The Athletic, the game will come too soon for Bradley, who is not expected to be involved on the night.

It's a blow for Liverpool's hopes of bouncing back with a big win. Everton are not to be underestimated. They will be very much looking forward to disrupting the Reds' rhythm and getting a result at Anfield.

In order to avoid an upset, Slot needs to have the strongest squad possible and right now that involves having Bradley in the team.

Now Liverpool will be forced to contend with makeshift options in what is one of the biggest games left of the season.

It's going to be interesting to see how Slot navigates this problem. The aforementioned Endo and Quansah could be viable options but it's also possible that Slot will choose a wildcard like Curtis Jones.

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There's a slim chance Joe Gomez could be involved, who was spotted back in first team training as well. Although, it way more likely that just like Bradley, this game will come too soon for him as well.

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