19 December 2023 , 15:25
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Liverpool will have to make a swift decision on the immediate future of Fabio Carvalho according to assistant manager Pep Lijnders.
Former Fulham youngster Carvalho joined RB Leipzig on loan at the start of the season but has struggled for game time in Germany. He has made 14 appearances for the Bundesliga club but only three of those have been starts, with his only full 90 minutes coming in last week's Champions League dead rubber at home to Young Boys.
His lack of minutes has led to some calls that the Reds could bring him back into the fold in January. Carvalho did feature regularly in Liverpool's matchday squads at the beginning of last season, scoring in the 9-0 win over Bournemouth and grabbing a last gasp winner against Newcastle.
But after netting in the 3-2 Carabao Cup defeat at Manchester City following the return from the World Cup break he would make just four more appearances in the campaign, with three of those coming in fleeting cameos off the bench.
Assistant boss Lijnders was asked about Carvalho's future at a press conference ahead of Wednesday's Carabao Cup quarter-final against West Ham, and he admitted that a choice would need to be made soon, with the options including leaving him at Leipzig, bringing him back into the Liverpool squad or loaning him elsewhere.
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Fabio Carvalho has struggled for game time at Leipzig (Getty Images)Lijnders said: “It’s most important he finds rhythm; we all know a player with rhythm is a different player than a player without.
“A player with confidence or without confidence, and a player who trains in a certain way, is a different player. He needs to find minutes, but it’s not up to me, it’s up to our directors to speak with the club and find the best solution for him. We all want the best for him because he is our player, so wait and see but no decision [has been] made about that.”
The immediate future of Carvalho, who is capable of playing in midfield or attack, could be tied to the injury situations of a number of Liverpool players.
Ben Doak has been sent for surgery on a knee injury (Dave Winter/REX/Shutterstock)Lijnders confirmed on Tuesday that Alexis Mac Allister won't return from his knee issue until early January, but there was better news on Ryan Gravenberch and Diogo Jota, with the former not completely ruled out of the West Ham game despite going off injured against Manchester United on Sunday.
However young Scottish winger Ben Doak has been sent for knee surgery, with Lijnders offering a bleak update. “That’s not a good one," he said. "He teared his lateral meniscus, which needs surgery.
"That one will take [a] longer time. He is young, he is a fit guy, he is a positive guy so for sure he will come back stronger, and we need him to come back with the same fire he has with the ball, how he was. He can take time and we will wait for him.”