Liverpool’s Leoni faces longer wait for team training as Iraola updates Bradley and Ekitiké

Liverpool defender Giovanni Leoni’s planned return to team training has been delayed by about a month, head coach Andoni Iraola said ahead of the club’s Premier League trip to Brentford on Saturday. Iraola said the 19-year-old’s knee injury involved more than a torn anterior cruciate ligament, requiring care as he works towards rejoining the squad. He also gave updates on injured teammates Conor Bradley and Hugo Ekitiké.

Why Leoni’s training return has moved back

Leoni had been expected to train with Liverpool during the recent international break. Iraola said the plan had shifted to the next break, which begins on 9 November, costing the defender roughly a month. He described the change as a delay rather than a setback and said the club wanted Leoni to be confident in his rehabilitation before he returned to the team.

Bradley and Ekitiké’s recovery progress

Bradley is closer to working with the squad, though Iraola distinguished that step from full training. ‘Conor is not so far from training with the group – not full training but doing some things with the group,’ he said, according to the Guardian. Bradley has been sidelined since a serious knee injury sustained at Arsenal in January.

Ekitiké is a little behind Bradley in the recovery process, as planned, Iraola said. The striker’s debut season at Liverpool was cut short by an Achilles injury against Paris Saint-Germain in April. Iraola said both players were doing well, but gave no date for either to return to matches after their long absences.

Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexander Isak and Cody Gakpo also remain doubts for the Brentford match, the Guardian reported. Injuries sustained on international duty kept all three out of Liverpool’s previous two fixtures.