Matip ruled out of the season ahead of Liverpool v City

Liverpool's preparation for their Champions League quarter-final against Manchester City have been dealt a huge blow after a thigh injury ruled out Joel Matip for the rest of the season.

The centre-back sustained a problem in Saturday's victory at Crystal Palace and will require an operation.

Matip was able to complete the full 90 minutes of the fixture, but afterwards medical assessment on the thigh revealed surgery is expected to be required to correct the problem,'' said a statement on liverpoolfc.com.

The operation is likely to end the 26-year-old's involvement in the remainder of the 2017-18 season.''

It limits manager Jurgen Klopp's defences resources further as Joe Gomez is likely to be sidelined for a few more weeks with an ankle injury sustained on international duty while Nathaniel Clyne has yet to play this season due to a back injury.

Klopp is hoping Emre Can will have sufficiently recovered from a back problem which forced him to miss Germany's international friendlies and the win at Palace.

He is also awaiting an update on Adam Lallana's leg injury after the England midfielder limped off just three minutes after coming on in the second half at Selhurst Park