Jurgen Klopp has explained his defensive decisions for the Porto match in the Champions League tonight - which see Dejan Lovren start and Joe Gomez make a shock return to the squad.
Earlier this week Klopp had indicated it might be a little while before Liverpool fans saw Gomez back in action.
But, explaining the decision to name him on the bench, the boss said: "Joe actually should have played a couple of minutes today in an internal friendly game behind closed doors, but Alberto [Moreno] was not ready for the bench and we don’t have a lot of left-back options left, so that’s why Joe is in.”
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Liverpool team news confirmed for Champions League clash against Porto as Joe Gomez returns to squad as Joel Matip is among the substitutes.
Klopp said: “Dejan has been training for about three or four weeks already.
"Joel played so many games, so it’s just to use fresh legs and the energy of Dejan. That’s pretty much all we changed."
Liverpool team news confirmed for Champions League clash against Porto as Joe Gomez returns to squad
Jordan Henderson has been given the nod in midfield, alongside Fabinho and Naby Keita.
On Henderson's start and the decision to rest Gini Wijnaldum, Klopp said: “Hendo starts [in midfield] and it’s all good with Gini, but of course [with] the intensity of the last couple of games and [he has had] a little bit of a stiff back in the last few days, so that’s the situation.
“As long as we have these good options then everything is OK."
