"Big blow for us and him" – Arne Slot confirms 2 Liverpool stars will miss Premier League clash against Aston Villa

Liverpool head coach Arne Slot has confirmed that Cody Gakpo and Joe Gomez will miss the Reds' Premier League match against Aston Villa at Villa Park on Wednesday (February 19).

Earlier this month, Gakpo suffered a knock in his team's 2-2 league draw against Everton. On the other hand, Gomez was forced off in the recent 1-0 FA Cup loss at Plymouth Argyle owing to a new hamstring issue.

At a recent pre-match press conference, Slot said (h/t Liverpool Echo):

"Cody and Joe are unavailable for tomorrow. Cody is close to being back and Joe will be out for quite a long while with a hamstring injury. It was a big blow for us and for Joe. He tried to do everything to be with the team and worked hard, then first game back, he makes a sprint and now he's out for a while."

Providing more insight into Gomez's latest injury setback, Slot continued:

"It's very hard for a player at any point of season, especially now. He will miss large parts of the end of the season but we expect him to be back [before the end]. He might need surgery but that's something we still have to assess."

Gomez, 27, has started 11 of his 17 appearances across competitions for Liverpool this season. Meanwhile, Gakpo has registered 16 goals and five assists in 36 overall matches for the Reds so far in the ongoing term.

Arne Slot opines on Liverpool forward's return

When queried about Diogo Jota, Arne Slot replied (h/t Liverpool Echo):

"He has a role like many others. He did so well before his [rib] injury, we have missed him for three or four months. We have missed the number nine who played the first seven or eight games. Now he is back. He played 60 [in the recent 2-1 league triumph against Wolverhampton Wanderers] and we don't expect him to play 90, 90, 90 but we hope he is involved in [the upcoming] three games."

Jota, 28, opened the ongoing 2024-25 campaign on a fine note, starting seven of the Anfield side's eight Premier League outings. However, he suffered a rib injury in a 2-1 league triumph over Chelsea last October.

Since recovering from his injury, the Portuguese forward has started just one Premier League contest. He is set to feature in Liverpool's next three matches against Aston Villa, Manchester City, and Newcastle United.