Klopp happy Fabinho doing well in central defence

LONDON: Brazil midfielder Fabinho impressed Juergen Klopp enough in central defence in the 1-0 win over Brighton to reassure the Liverpool manager he can be a reliable stop-gap partner for Virgil van Dijk.

Croatian Dejan Lovren added to the problems in central defence when the World Cup finalist suffered a hamstring injury in the FA Cup defeat by Wolverhampton last Monday.

Joe Gomez is still out with a foot injury although Cameroon international Joel Matip has returned to training after recovering from a broken collarbone.

Klopp, though, enthused over Fabinho’s performance against an admittedly limited Brighton attack which leaves his side seven points clear of Manchester City, although the champions can reduce it to four if they beat Wolves later on Monday.

“He is a brilliant player and I am happy that he can play (against Brighton) – it’s now pretty clear (that he can play in defence),” said Klopp.

“It’s not like it came one attack after the other from Brighton. We had the ball most of the time, so then it makes sense to have a good footballer in that position.

“He did well in these situations (dealing with the high ball) and with (playing) the ball it’s absolutely clear. He has a defending brain and can do it in different positions, it’s good.”