Woodman to Start After Mamardashvili Injury

When is Alisson back from injury? Liverpool’s No. 1 will again be in focus after Giorgi Mamardashvili was sidelined to leave Freddie Woodman as starter.

Mamardashvili is expected to miss the visit of Crystal Palace on April 25 at the very least after picking up a nasty knee injury in the Merseyside derby.

Taking his place in the 58th minute, 29-year-old summer signing Woodman made his Premier League debut for the club and helped earn a 2-1 victory over Everton.

In his post-match interview with BBC Sport, Arne Slot revealed Mamardashvili had been taken straight to hospital and cast doubt over his involvement in the next game.

“I fear the worst,” he said. “Not the worst [as] in a long-term injury, but fear the worst for next week.”

Liverpool are as yet unclear when Mamardashvili will return or if he will even play again this season, with only five games to go in the next five weeks.

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The hope will be that Alisson can soon make his comeback from a hamstring injury which has so far kept him out for the last six games.

The Brazilian has missed both legs of the Champions League quarter-final against PSG, the FA Cup quarter-final loss to Man City and the Premier League clashes with Brighton, Fulham and Everton.

However Liverpool could look to have their No. 1 back in the near future, with Alisson having provided an update on his recovery on Instagram on April 3.

“I didn’t suffer a new injury,” he explained.

“I’m in the treatment phase, and the plan is to be in full playing condition by the end of April!”

That could see the 33-year-old return to availability in time to face Palace on April 25, though a more realistic target may be the trip to Man United on May 3.

If that is the case, Woodman would likely start against Palace for the second time this season, having made his competitive debut for Liverpool in the 3-0 Carabao Cup defeat in October.

After that the expectation is that Alisson will be fit to take over regardless of Mamardashvili’s situation – which would be the ideal scenario for Liverpool.

Reflecting on Woodman’s performance against Everton, Slot told reporters on Sunday: “Freddie did a great job.

“He deserves a lot of credit because you have to come in just after conceding 1-1 and the fans were ready for it, but he did his job really well.

“He kept calm in a difficult moment and kept his nerve, worked so hard to have this moment.

“Usually third goalkeepers don’t play a lot, but in a season like ours, I think if you are playing in the under-8s at Liverpool you should be ready to make your debut because it’s unbelievable what’s happening to us!”