Liverpool have been without Alisson Becker for a number of weeks now but Caoimhin Kelleher has proved yet again more than just a stand-in keeper for the Reds

Jurgen Klopp has admitted Alisson Becker’s hamstring injury is “serious” and “not a short one” but “not season-ending”.

That makes the importance of Caoimhin Kelleher even greater and more of a relief for Liverpool that Saturday’s opponents Nottingham Forest never came with anything better than an unrealistic offer.

Kelleher, 25, will start at the City Ground but he could have been in the home goal if Forest had been successful with a deadline-day bid for him.

“For me it was never a discussion, we spoke about it but for me there was no chance of him leaving so I was not interested in who was asking,” said Klopp.

“It would have had to be proper price to give us a chance of doing something in a difficult market. It is not like other goalkeepers moving from A to B for £15m or £20m, that is totally unrealistic and nonsense in how I understood it.”

Liverpool have been without Alisson since illness ruled him out of their win over Burnley and then he picked up a hamstring injury on the eve of their victory at Brentford.

On the keeper’s injury, Klopp said: “There is no real timescale on it, but it is a proper muscle injury. Different players recover differently. That is it pretty much. It is not a short one.

“It is not that he will be in contention for next week or something like that. We have to wait a few more weeks, definitely, for him. He is working in the gym, not on the pitch, it is a rather serious one but not a season-ending injury.”

Kelleher was the Carabao Cup hero last weekend with key saves to deny Chelsea in both normal and extra time. It was another impressive showing from the Irish stopper, who scored in the penalty shootout in the 2022 edition of the same final against the same team.

Kelleher was in fine form against Southampton (
Image:
Photo by Alex Livesey – Danehouse/Getty Images)
Kelleher has been second in command to one of the world’s best keepers and could no doubt start for the majority of the clubs in the Premier League.

But he has yet to seriously agitate for a move away and has now played five Premier League games – unbeaten in all – this season, five in the Europa and six in the League Cup. While he pulled off some fine saves to deny Southampton in the FA Cup in midweek.

“With a goalkeeper it is slightly different, but it never reached a point where we had a discussion whereby it was, ‘you have to stay, shut up’,” said Klopp.

“You would have to ask him exactly what he thought, but I think now he would be pretty happy with the decision he made in the summer.”

Kelleher has played in five league games this season (
Image:
Getty Images)
Some teams struggle to find top first-choice keepers but Liverpool have two in their ranks and Kelleher will be needed in the coming weeks and potentially months.

“The gap between the first and second goalkeeper cannot be a big amount,” added Klopp, whose side can move four points clear at the top of the table on Saturday.

“There must be quality in that position because the football demands are just too big to now play the goalkeeper for four years in a row in all the competitions.”

Dominik Szoboszlai and Darwin Nunez will return after spells out with injury while Wataru Endo and Andy Robertson are also available but Mo Salah remains sidelined with a hamstring problem.