20 January 2023 , 20:44
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Liverpool star Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has hit out at “tough” claims that he is injury-prone and admits that he is “hungry” for more opportunities.
The midfielder, now 29, has struggled to establish himself as a first-team regular at Arsenal before his £35m move to Liverpool. Despite a positive first campaign on Merseyside, he missed the end of the 2017/18 season having ruptured his cruciate ligament.
That saw him all-but miss the entirety of the following season and he has been in and out of the side under Jurgen Klopp ever since. There have been claims that his fragility has hugely hampered his career.
Oxlade-Chamberlain has hit out at those suggestions by confirming that he has suffered just one further injury since then and has admitted that his limited opportunities at Anfield has left him feeling motivated for more game time. Speaking to Football Focus, he said: "I have only had the hamstring injury during pre-season between that time [since the ACL injury].
"When the game time is down sometimes people correlate that with an injury, when over that two-year spell I have only had the hamstring injury, but I wasn’t playing as much. Being fit and available and wanting to play, but not playing as much as you would like is tough as a footballer.
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"There is a lot of competition for places so when you do get the opportunities it makes you that little bit more hungry to make sure you take them. I still feel like there is more in me for sure."
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has made just five starts under Jurgen Klopp this season (Getty Images)Should Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain leave Liverpool this summer? S hare your thoughts in the comments below
Oxlade-Chamberlain has made just ten appearances this season with exactly half of those being starts. It is hard to argue that his period with Liverpool hasn’t been a success having added a Premier League, Champions League and a further FA Cup winners’ medal to his collection.
However, he might be forced to come to a decision over his future at Anfield sooner rather than later. Oxlade-Chamberlain’s contract expires in the summer and he could be set to leave the club on a free transfer in just a few months’ time.
Reds’ boss Klopp has already offered an insight into his future and stated that if he can stay fit, then he might earn an extended stay on Merseyside after all. Speaking to Amazon Prime, the German said: "First and foremost Ox is a brilliant player and he is an even better person so I know about the situation but the situation for a professional footballer comes in from time to time.
"We can’t think too much about the summer but Ox is fit and back and he was back before the break but not 100 per cent fit then, now he is.
"He’s had top, top preparations and unfortunately he got ill before the City game so he would’ve started there. Hopefully he can keep that shape going, we would be happy for that and the future would be bright for everybody."