Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has urged caution over the 'exciting' comeback of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, and has insisted that the midfielder will be kept out of the spotlight for the foreseeable future.
The England international had been out of action for almost a year for the Reds before making his long-awaited return in an Under-23's fixture against Derby County three weeks ago.
After being taken off in the first half of the game with a suspected hamstring problem, Klopp revealed in his pre-match press conference on Friday that Oxlade-Chamberlain will be held back over the next few weeks to ensure the 25-year-old makes a full recovery.
The Reds boss admitted (as quoted by the club's official website): "I think one of the biggest mistakes I made [in press conferences] was being so excited about having Ox back – not because it’s not exciting having Ox back, it’s very exciting.
"But the spotlight on the game at Derby with the under-23s was pretty rare. I’m pretty sure Ox felt a little bit after the last session with us and then he played the game and felt a little bit more. Everybody was looking at it.
Getting back in sync @MoSalah #YNWA pic.twitter.com/D0MoFnl8UG
— Alex Ox-Chamberlain (@Alex_OxChambo) 18 February 2019
“So now we keep him a little bit in the shadow; he is in a good moment, he will train. When he is back and when he is ready to be properly back then I will inform you. Until then, I will not speak about Ox.”
Ahead of Liverpool's crucial Premier League game against Tottenham on Sunday, Klopp also confirmed both Trent Alexander-Arnold and Xherdan Shaqiri have resumed full training.
The duo were forced to withdraw from international duty with England and Switzerland respectively, but would join Joe Gomez in making their return to training.
Klopp added: "Yesterday they were all in training, for all three pretty much the first full session, so we have to see how they react.
"They should all be OK, I heard nothing different this morning since I’ve been here, so they should be OK. They will train again today and then we will see.”
Source : 90min