Andy Robertson, left-back for Liverpool, is poised to return to first-team action in January after suffering a dislocated shoulder while playing for Scotland.
Robertson, 29, was injured in a Euro 2024 qualifier against Spain on October 12 and required surgery to correct the problem. He has missed Liverpool’s previous eight Premier League games, with Kostas Tsimikas and Joe Gomez filling in.
According to the Daily Mail, Robertson is back on the turf practicing running drills and making daily improvement at the club’s AXA Training Centre. His workload is divided between treatment and strengthening the injured shoulder, and he has yet to be seen undertaking contact work.
The Scotland international cannot risk having his arm clattered while his shoulder is still recovering, but he might return to general fitness soon. Liverpool has five matches scheduled for the end of 2023, including back-to-back Premier League home meetings against Manchester United and Arsenal.
After missing Scotland’s final two Euro 2024 qualifiers last month, Robertson provided an update on his condition and stated that his recuperation was going “well.” “Yeah, getting there, slowly but surely,” he told Viaplay Sports. The surgery was a success, and there were no complications as a result of it.
“So far, so good. I think I’m about three weeks since my surgery now, so everything is progressing well. Just bit by bit, got to take it week by week. Everything has gone well up to this point and hopefully that continues and then hopefully before we know it I’ll be back on the grass.”
Jurgen Klopp revealed after Robertson’s injury that the ex-Hull defender will be out for three months, which would put him out until mid-January. “The decision we make is surgery,” Klopp remarked on October 20. That suggests he’ll be gone for a while. I’m not sure how long that will take.”
Klopp added: “You only see the real extent of injury when you have a look into it, like properly open (up the shoulder) and fix it – but my experience tells me around about three months.”
Some Liverpool fans were apprehensive about how the club would do without Robertson, but the Reds have performed admirably in the Premier League. Liverpool have won six and drew two of the eight Premier League games Robertson has missed.
Klopp’s players came from behind to win all three points in their most recent match, a 2-1 triumph over Crystal Palace on Saturday. The Reds manager was not thrilled with his team’s performance, but goals from Mohamed Salah and Harvey Elliott secured the victory.