By David Lynch, Merseyside Correspondent

30th Mar, 2023 | 11:09am

Sources: 'Surprising' update on Liverpool star Kostas Tsimikas after injury blow

Liverpool are confident Kostas Tsimikas has avoided serious injury and could even be in surprise contention to face Man City this weekend, sources have told Football Insider.

The 26-year-old was withdrawn just 24 minutes into Greece’s 0-0 friendly draw with Lithuania on Monday after signalling his discomfort to the bench.

That had prompted fears of another fitness blow for the Reds, who are likely to need their back-up left-back in a week that sees them travel to both Manchester City and Chelsea over a three-day period.

However, sources close to the player have told Football Insider that Tsimikas has sustained only a minor injury to his back and is unlikely to be sidelined for long.

It is even thought that he could prove his fitness in time to form part of the squad that travels to the Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

Jurgen Klopp already knows that he will be without midfielders Stefan Bajcetic and Thiago Alcantara for this weekend’s game, with the former having been ruled out for the season.

But it is hoped that defender Joe Gomez will return from injury, while Luis Diaz may also be in contention for a place on the bench after a long-awaited return to first-team training this week.

As for Tsimikas, he will be out to add to the 22 appearances in all competitions he has managed for Liverpool so far this season.

Much of his time at Anfield has seen him struggle to dislodge Andy Robertson from the role of first-choice on the left-hand side of Jurgen Klopp’s defence.

However, he has still been involved in plenty of memorable moments, including scoring the winning penalty in last season’s FA Cup final victory over Chelsea at Wembley.

In other news, Liverpool are set to return to Asia on a one-stop pre-season tour this summer.