Report: Liverpool don’t intend to alter transfer plans despite gutting Conor Bradley injury blow

Liverpool suffered a major body blow in recent days after it was confirmed that Conor Bradley had incurred a serious knee injury.

As reported by Paul Joyce for The Times over the weekend, the 22-year-old’s season has ended prematurely after scans confirmed significant ligament and bone damage that he sustained towards the end of the 0-0 draw at Arsenal last Thursday.

Sky Germany’s Florian Plettenberg had claimed (via X) that Anfield chiefs are ‘urgently searching for a replacement’ for the Northern Ireland international, but a reliable update from elsewhere on Tuesday morning has contradicted that stance.

Liverpool don’t plan to sign a right-back this month

In the latest Transfer DealSheet for The Athletic, David Ornstein reported that Liverpool ‘do not intend to sign’ a right-back this month after the injury to Bradley, despite ‘speculation’ to the contrary.

It’s hoped at Anfield that the 22-year-old will return for the start of pre-season in the summer and, ‘given the way the club operate, they would not make a permanent signing for such a period of time’.

Liverpool have options but are still at risk of right-back shortage

Liverpool are renowned for avoiding knee-jerk reactions in the transfer market, even in the face of deafening pressure from a faction of the fan base, and it’s not wholly surprising that they won’t suddenly be panicked into signing a right-back this month even after Bradley’s injury.

As Ornstein pointed out within his report, the Reds have Jeremie Frimpong as a natural option, with Joe Gomez also experienced in at position, while Dominik Szoboszlai and Curtis Jones could also deputise on the right-hand side of defence if needed.

While we understand the logic of not spending a vast sum of money on a player to fill in for a few months, we just hope that Arne Slot isn’t left short at right-back for the remainder of this season if no signings are made in January.

Like Bradley, Frimpong has also had his injury issues in recent months, and the same is true of Gomez. Although Liverpool have midfielders who are capable of filling in at the back if required, that’s far from an ideal scenario, especially after such heavy recruitment throughout the squad last summer.

Let’s just hope that the Anfield hierarchy aren’t left with any regrets from the January transfer window if they opt against adding to Slot’s playing pick while they’re getting the opportunity to do so.

You can watch Slot’s full post-Barnsley press conference below, via Empire of the Kop on YouTube:

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