Lewis Steele has indicated how close Conor Bradley and Hugo Ekitike are to making their long-awaited comebacks from their respective injuries.
The Northern Ireland right-back hasn’t played in more than nine months since suffering a serious knee injury in Liverpool’s 0-0 draw at Arsenal in early January, while the French forward has now been sidelined for six months with the Achilles injury he sustained in the home defeat to his former club Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League quarter-finals.
Andoni Iraola hinted in July that it’d still be ‘months’ before either of them returned and that they were ‘way off’ getting back on the pitch, an assessment which has since proven to be accurate.
What’s the latest on the injuries to Bradley and Ekitike?
In a Liverpool Confidential Q&A for the Daily Mail, Steele was asked when Bradley might be fit to return to action, with the journalist also sharing a quick update on Ekitike.
The reporter outlined: ‘Bradley is in the final stages of his recovery after a horrendous knee injury suffered at the Emirates Stadium in January.
‘He is back working on grass, which is an important step, and hoping to join some sessions in the near future; but he will have to be eased back into the team slowly and setbacks are common in this final stage of rehabilitation, as seen with Giovanni Leoni.
‘Hugo Ekitike is said to be just behind Bradley on his own comeback trail.’
(Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)
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Bradley and Ekitike mustn’t be rushed back too soon
Such is the nature of the injuries suffered by Bradley and Ekitike that their condition will continue to be managed carefully, even if progress is being made. As much as we want to see them back in action, the worst thing Liverpool could do now is rush them back and risk them breaking down again immediately.
Steele referenced the case of Leoni, who’s now missed 13 months with a horrific ACL injury and recently suffered a setback which has delayed his return to team training even further.
Right now, it’d seem that the best-case scenario is for all three players to have gotten back on the pitch by the end of 2026, even if it’s only for a handful of minutes in one game, and realistically it’ll take another few months before they’re fully back up to speed after such long absences.
In the meantime, Andoni Iraola will be heavily dependent on Ronald Araujo to continue excelling at right-back and Alexander Isak to maintain his fitness and form at centre-forward.
If both of those oblige, and Liverpool have Bradley and Ekitike fit again by the end of the year, suddenly the squad will look a whole lot stronger at both ends of the pitch.