Thiago set to miss Liverpool's Champions League clash against Benfica

Liverpool could be without their midfield maestro Thiago Alcantara tonight against Benfica.

When Thiago has played for Liverpool this season, they have looked like a different animal.

He brings calmness and class to Jurgen Klopp's midfield and when he hasn't played, we don't look nearly as impressive in the centre of the park.

Fans want him to play every game but unfortunately, he's 31-years-old and he has picked up a few injuries in his career.

With that in mind, Klopp has played Thiago very conservatively this campaign and we could see him miss out in tonight's Champions League quarter-final against Benfica because of that.

The Spaniard was not seen in Liverpool's live training session yesterday which suggests he is unlikely to feature this evening, according to Liverpool Echo, as cited by Anfield Watch's Twitter account.

Anfield Watch Verdict

Speaking about Thiago in a press conference earlier this year, as cited by Anfield Watch's Twitter account, Klopp said that they need to 'keep' him fit as he's such an important player.

"Thiago with his passing, really fresh, really relaxed, full of confidence, that helped as well. He is a good player, we just have to make sure we can keep him fit."

Keeping Thiago fit is going to be massive for the remaining games - he offers something different that the likes of Curtis Jones, Jordan Henderson, James Milner and others can't provide.

It sounds harsh to our opponents but we can risk resting the Spaniard tonight. We're 3-1 up and the game is at Anfield, if we lost it would be a huge shock.

With games against Manchester City in the FA Cup semi-final and a Premier League tie vs Manchester United coming up in the next week, we'll need Thiago a lot more in those games than today.

Hopefully, his absence is Klopp just resting him and it's not an injury worry.