Liverpool star Hugo Ekitike in tears hobbling off vs Brighton as injury worries deepen

Liverpool's injury problems continued to mount on Saturday afternoon as Hugo Ekitike was forced off inside eight minutes of the Reds' Premier League clash against Brighton & Hove Albion. The striker started at the AMEX Stadium after scoring in midweek against Galatasaray.

However, he stayed down after colliding with ex-Liverpool man James Milner before receiving treatment. He returned to the field very briefly, before going back down and being replaced by Curtis Jones.

Less than 10 minutes later, Arne Slot's men fell behind when Danny Welbeck converted from close range. The injury to Ekitike comes after Liverpool were forced to name a squad without Mohamed Salah .

The forward was confirmed as an absentee for the trip to the AMEX Stadium after being forced off against Galatasaray in the Champions League on Wednesday night. "Indeed, [it's] unusual," Slot said when speaking about the Egyptian's fitness. "As a result of that I think you can expect the outcome. So, [he's] not available for tomorrow."

He added: "The good thing for Liverpool and for us is that we go to an international break. The bad thing for Egypt is that he can't go there. We are hoping also with what Mo has shown in the past that he can recover faster than other players might in similar situations because he takes such good care of his body.

"History has shown that he can be earlier back than some others. But it's only two weeks when we go again so let's hope in that period of time he can be back."

Salah joins Alisson Becker as a recent injury problem for Liverpool after he picked dup a muscular injury. The goalkeeper missed the midweek win and isn't expected back until after the international break.

Alexander Isak has been out since December and is closing on a return to fitness. Wataru Endo and Giovanni Leoni are long-term absences, while Conor Bradley is out with a serious knee injury.