Liverpool suffer Curtis Jones, Diogo Jota injury blows against Brentford

Liverpool lost both Curtis Jones and Diogo Jota to injury problems in the first half of their Premier League clash with Brentford on Saturday afternoon.

Jones was forced off in the 34th minute of the contest with Thomas Frank's side after a challenge with Mathias Jensen, but there will be greater concern over the issue suffered by Jota.

The Portugal international had to be stretchered off the field in the latter stages of the first period, having picked up a problem when Christian Norgaard landed on his knee.

Jota's departure opened the door for Mohamed Salah to make his return to action, with the attacker back in the squad for the first time since suffering a muscle injury while representing Egypt at the Africa Cup of Nations.

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Liverpool led 1-0 at the interval of Saturday's clash courtesy of a goal from Darwin Nunez, but he was also replaced by Cody Gakpo at the half-time break for an unknown reason.

The away side then doubled their advantage in the 55th minute through Alexis Mac Allister, before Salah capped his return to action with a goal in the 68th minute.

Brentford, though, managed to make it 3-1 in the 75th minute through the in-form Ivan Toney.

Should Liverpool navigate their way to three points from a very strong position in the match, they would move onto 57 points from their 25 Premier League matches this season.

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Such a total would leave them five points ahead of second-placed Manchester City at the summit, although the reigning champions have two games in hand.

Liverpool already have a lengthy injury list, with Joel Matip, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Dominik Szoboszlai, Alisson Becker, Thiago Alcantara and Stefan Bajcetic all unavailable for selection.

The injuries suffered by Jones and Jota will now needed to be assessed ahead of Liverpool's next game, which comes in the Premier League against Luton Town on February 21.

Klopp's side will also face Chelsea in the EFL Cup final on February 25, and it seems highly unlikely that Jota will be available for that match considering his exit on a stretcher.