Liverpool star leaves pre-season tour early as Arne Slot delivers injury update

Joe Gomez has flown home from Liverpool's pre-season tour of Asia after suffering an Achilles problem – with Arne Slot confirming the defender will undergo treatment back in England.

The 28-year-old left Hong Kong on Friday night after complaining of pain in his Achilles, and will now continue his recovery work at the AXA Training Centre on Merseyside.

'He was, of course, with us for the first part of the week, but he had some Achilles problems,' Slot told Liverpoolfc.com ahead of Saturday's 4-2 defeat to AC Milan.

'We thought it was better to assess it back in England and for him to work on him to come back to the team, probably in more ideal circumstances for him than be part of the group that every time goes out.

'So, we decided to let him go back to England. But we hope and expect to have him back soon.'

While Liverpool hope the issue is minor, Gomez's injury is still a concern given his recent history. He made 17 appearances in all competitions last season but his campaign ended in disappointment when he was forced off after just 11 minutes during an FA Cup defeat at Plymouth Argyle in February — his final appearance of 2024-25.

With Jarell Quansah sold to Bayer Leverkusen for £35million earlier this summer, Gomez's absence leaves Liverpool short at the back. Only three senior centre backs remain — and one is already injured.

Slot was forced to experiment in defence against Milan, with Ryan Gravenberch starting alongside Virgil van Dijk and Kostas Tsimikas later filling in.

Both struggled as Milan's forwards exposed Liverpool's defensive frailties, with Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Noah Okafor among the scorers.

Slot later dismissed panic over the situation, saying: 'I don't think we have a concern at centre back. Ryan showed he can play that position – he did it well, although we favour him as a number six.

'Wataru Endo can play there. So we have enough options but it is true that Jarell Quansah left and we haven't replaced him yet.'

Liverpool have been linked with Crystal Palace and England defender Marc Guehi, and Gomez's setback could accelerate that interest.

Ibrahima Konate, who captained the side in the second half on Saturday, is also of interest to Real Madrid, with just 12 months remaining on his contract.

Meanwhile, Florian Wirtz made his first start for Liverpool on Saturday since his £116m move from Bayer Leverkusen and impressed in a makeshift false nine role.

The 2023-24 Bundesliga Player of the Year linked well with Mohamed Salah and 16-year-old Rio Ngumoha before being withdrawn at half-time.

Slot was without both Darwin Nunez and Luis Diaz. Nunez missed out through injury, while Diaz was absent due to 'speculation on his future'.

Cody Gakpo and Dominik Szoboszlai were on the scoresheet for the Premier League champions, but the Reds struggled defensively in front of a sold-out Kai Tak Stadium crowd.

Liverpool now travel to Japan, where they will face Yokohama F. Marinos at the Nissan Stadium on Wednesday in the final leg of their pre-season tour.