Could Mamadou Sakho’s days as a Liverpool player be numbered?
The Reds centre-half has been ordered home by manager Jurgen Klopp to continue his rehabilitation on Merseyside.
In spite of his Achilles injury, Sakho was brought along on Liverpool’s pre-season tour of the United States as Klopp wanted to improve the team spirit in his squad.
That makes the decision to send the French international back to Melwood on a flight with Bournemouth-bound Brad Smith all the more concerning.
The Liverpool Echo reports that Sakho’s behaviour on the tour was not sitting well with Klopp, who declined to comment on the reason for sending the defender home.
The fact that Lucas Leiva and Joe Gomez, both also injured, are remaining with the squad would suggest that there is a reason other than injury treatment behind the decision.
Sakho will miss the start of the Premier League season with the achilles issue after being cleared by Uefa of a potential doping violation.
The 26-year-old missed Liverpool’s Europa League final against Sevilla, as well as the entirety of France’s Euro 2016 campaign, due to an investigation into a a failed drug test. However, the charges were dropped earlier this month.
Brilliant! #LFC #Sakho #Klopp https://t.co/uWBgP0Yfp4
— David Cresswell (@CresswellDJ) July 23, 2016
Who knows why Sakho was sent home early? But on the evidence of the interrupted interview above, Klopp and Sakho are not exactly on the best terms.
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