Liverpool handed injury scare ahead of Man City clash as Kostas Tsimikas forced off during Greece match

Liverpool have been given a fresh injury scare after defender Kostas Tsimikas had to be substituted in the first half of a friendly.

Liverpool have endured a hugely disappointing season. After coming close to winning an unprecedented quadruple last season, all Jurgen Klopp's side have left to fight for this season is a top-four finish.

Qualifying for next season's Champions League is far from a given; Liverpool are battling with Brighton, Newcastle and Tottenham, and next up is a trip to title-chasers Manchester City.

Although several factors have contributed to Liverpool's poor form, a failure to reinforce an ageing midfield being one of them, it's undeniable that the Reds have had terrible luck with injuries this term.

Plenty of key players have missed large chunks of the season, and on more than one occasion Klopp has had to play players out of position to patch things up.

With a tough test at the Etihad Stadium coming up on Saturday, the last thing Klopp needed was any more of his players picking up injuries while away on international duty,

Unfortunately for him, that appears to have happened.

Liverpool handed Tsimikas scare

Left-back Kostas Tsimikas lasted just 23 minutes of Greece's goalless draw with Lithuania on Monday before he had to be withdrawn.

The defender's involvement in the friendly match ended midway through the first half as he was forced out of action, with Norwich City’s Dimitris Giannoulis replacing him.

Fortunately for Liverpool, the early signs are that the injury isn't too serious.

Greek journalist Giannis Chorianopoulos, who was covering the match, tweeted: "Tsimikas is out after 23 minutes at the Greece v Lithuania friendly match. Right rib problem. Seems not serious."

With first-choice left-back Andrew Robertson set to start for Scotland against Spain on Tuesday evening, it remains to be seen who will get the nod at the Etihad.

In other injury news, Luis Diaz reportedly has a chance to feature against City, although midfielder Thiago Alcantara looks set to miss out with a hip complaint.