Arne Slot has delivered a concerning injury development on first-team star Florian Wirtz ahead of Liverpool’s Premier League showdown with West Ham United on Saturday.
Slot’s men do battle with the Hammers on the weekend in much-improved form, having won their last two fixtures in all competitions, which included Alexis Mac Allister bagging a late winner last time out on the road at Nottingham Forest.
For that nervy clash at the City Ground, the Dutchman had to make do with Dominik Szoboszlai filling in as an emergency right-back option, due to injury issues piling up at the back.
Thankfully, the adaptable Hungarian has often shone from this position, when called into action, with Szoboszlai winning seven combined tackles and duels against Vitor Pereira’s hosts to preserve the clean sheet.
While Slot will love what he’s seeing from his dependable number eight, he could welcome back an often injury-stricken Jeremie Frimpong to the first team mix on Saturday, having given a positive update to the press on his fitness situation.
The latest on Frimpong’s fitness situation
It has been a rocky start for Frimpong, ever since he swapped Bayer Leverkusen for a permanent home at Anfield in the summer.
A recurring hamstring issue has meant he has only featured for a minimal 1014 mins this season across all competitions, with his last Premier League outing falling back in mid-January, before being sidelined yet again.
Jeremie Frimpong: 2025–26 Season Injury Record:
| Period | Injury | Status/Impact |
| August 2025 | Hamstring | Missed early season action |
| October 2025 | Hamstring | Long period of absence |
| January 2026 | Hamstring | Forced off early in Champions League – missing for 5 games |
| February 2026 | Recovery | Back in full training |
He could now be out the other side of these constant setbacks, though, with Slot revealing that Frimpong is back in training, ahead of the clash with Nuno Espirito Santo’s lowly visitors on Saturday.
He said – “Jeremie is OK, trained with us and is available.”
Additionally, Slot has also allayed fears surrounding Milos Kerkez, who came off towards the end of the tense Forest victory.
Slot further stated, when quizzed on Kerkez – “He was completely fit, he played 80 mins and then I changed it for Robertson.
I changed my wingers and full-backs for that fresh energy. That is the good thing about having more than 11 players. If I can, I do so. Milos played an OK game. He is available for tomorrow.”
Unfortunately, for the Liverpool masses tuning in, Slot didn’t have equally good news to spread when it comes to Florian Wirtz, who pulled up in the warm-up at the City Ground, to the dismay of the travelling Merseyside faithful.
The disappointing injury update on Wirtz
This injury issue couldn’t have come at a more frustrating time for the pricey German, who was just starting to find his feet at Anfield, before disaster struck.
Indeed, the 22-year-old – who cost a whopping £116m to snap up – now has a promising six goals and eight assists next to his name for the season, after suffering from an extremely slow start in his new surroundings.
He won’t be adding to his Liverpool tally at the weekend, however, with Slot cautious when updating the media on how long the playmaker will be out of action for, having suffered from a back problem at Forest.
Slot opened up by saying – “I don’t expect Florian to be, which is a disappointment, every time my player isn’t available is a disappointment and I didn’t expect.
No [idea how long he is out], usually I do, but don’t want to share it, but I honestly don’t know.
Moreover, the former Feyenoord boss did take time to praise Wirtz for his ability to adjust to the Premier League, but couldn’t hide his disappointment at how long he might be sidelined for.
Slot concluded by saying – “It’s a big accomplishment for him to stay fit for such a long time because he had to stay fit to make the step up but unfortunately he is not available, which is a disappointment for him and for us, because he played really well.”
With Wirtz out, but Frimpong back and available for selection, it will be intriguing to see what starting XI Slot goes with, as relegation candidates West Ham travel to Anfield.
