Joe Gomez has given Liverpool a huge injury boost after returning to full training at Melwood on Tuesday.
Gomez's fine season was crudely cut short when he suffered a fractured leg in a challenge with Burnley's Ben Mee back in the first week of December.
The England international underwent a successful surgery in February and has been on the mend since, but it's been nearly four months since he last turned out for Jurgen Klopp's Premier League title-chasers.
Dejan Lovren and, more recently, Joel Matip have deputised in Gomez 's absence, but his return to training will be a welcome piece of news for Jurgen Klopp as he aims for glory both domestically and in the Champions League.
Klopp told Liverpoolfc.com: "It is nice - Joe is not injured anymore and nearly fit.
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“He will not be in the afternoon training session because he has to do something else - he has to work on his endurance, that’s how it is and how the boys always have to do it, like Ox had to do it when he was finally back in training.
“After a long time, I think Joe was out for 15 weeks, that is long, so he needs to now create the basis again for the rest of the season."
It's further good news on the defensive front for the Reds after Dejan Lovren hands Jurgen Klopp a timely injury boost as Liverpool's season enters home stretch when Croatia were beaten by Hungary on Sunday.
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Meanwhile the Liverpool manager has also given an update on the fitness of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
The midfielder returned to Under-23 action earlier this month but only lasted 41 minutes of a scheduled 45 in a victory over Derby County.
It was Oxlade-Chamberlain's first appearance in a Liverpool shirt since a serious knee injury sustained against Roma 11 months ago and he is being kept on a specially-tailored training programme by the club.
Klopp is hopeful the former Arsenal man can return to full training with his team-mates next week, however.
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“I spoke to him a second ago; Ox is positive, we are all positive,” Klopp added.
"It was a little setback [against Derby], it was not more, but it was a setback. That’s how it is.
“You don’t want to be overly sensitive after a period like this because they train a lot - training is always like this, it’s like stress for the body. You feel something, but you don’t want to mention everything because it [can be] DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness).
“It was the case with him, it was a little bit more than DOMS, but not really [serious].
Dejan Lovren hands Jurgen Klopp a timely injury boost as Liverpool's season enters home stretch
"We are careful of course, he is working, he is doing a lot and I think will be in training in a week again. Then he will be fine.”
Liverpool return to action when they host Tottenham on Sunday afternoon.
