Everton manager Sean Dyche has confirmed his team will be without three senior players for the Merseyside derby at Anfield this weekend.
Saturday sees the resumption of the Premier League following the international break as the red and blue halves of the city get set to do battle in the early kick-off.
The Blues will do so without three of their first-team players, with Dyche providing a fitness update for his squad on Thursday afternoon ahead of the showdown.
The Everton boss confirmed that Dele Alli, Andre Gomes and Seamus Coleman will all be unavailable for the game as they continue to nurse long-term fitness issues.
Dyche told the media during his pre-match press conference: “Dele Alli and Andre [Gomes] are out. Seamus Coleman is back on the grass for the first time.”
Skipper Coleman has been out of action since May with a serious knee injury, while Alli and Gomes are also yet to feature this season.
He did provide more positive news for Everton fans, revealing that Idrissa Gana Gueye is set to be available having been sidelined for the win at home to Bournemouth before the break.
Liverpool are having to contend with injury problems of their own ahead of the fixture, with Andy Robertson expected to be out for an extended period after sustaining a dislocated shoulder during Scotland’s 2-0 defeat to Spain last week.
Cody Gakpo is likely to make his return having featured in training ahead of Everton‘s visit.
The Dutch forward picked up a knee problem of his own in the process of scoring the equaliser in last month’s controversial 2-1 defeat away to Tottenham and didn’t join up with the Netherlands squad during the break.
Darwin Nunez‘s availability is in doubt after suffering cramps during Uruguay’s win over Brazil, but he also trained alongside Gakpo in preparation for Saturday.
Jurgen Klopp is expected to provide his own set of fitness updates as he addresses the media at the AXA Training Centre at 1.30pm (BST) on Friday afternoon.
