Despite joining Portugal’s squad for the international break, Diogo Jota may be forced to return to Liverpool without even being in the squad for a match.
When training started last week, it had already been reported the striker was recovering from a ‘muscle discomfort’, as he didn’t train and stayed out of the friendly against Qatar on Saturday.
Now as Portugal prepare to play Luxembourg in a World Cup qualifiers tomorrow, manager Fernando Santos has revealed that Jota still hasn’t worked with the squad, and could indeed need to return to England.
“He trained a while ago, increased the intensity today with João Brito, but he didn’t train with us,” said Fernando Santos in a press conference (via Mais Futebol).
“I’ll make the decision shortly, and if he can’t play, he’ll head to Liverpool.”
Jota, who has three goals in nine appearances for Liverpool this season, had started for the Reds in the 2-2 draw against Manchester City, being replaced by Roberto Firmino in the 68th minute.
Since this seems to be an injury to be evaluated on a daily basis, it remains to be seen if he’d be a problem for the Reds’ match against Watford on Saturday.