Scotland’s national team manager, Steve Clarke, has disclosed that Andy Robertson, the Liverpool full-back and captain of the Tartan Army, will be returning to Liverpool due to a shoulder injury.
Robertson was substituted in the first half of Scotland’s 2-0 loss to Spain with his shoulder immobilized in a makeshift sling. The injury occurred when Athletic Bilbao’s goalkeeper, Unai Simon, landed awkwardly on the defender during a challenge.
While Clarke did not provide specific details about the extent of Robertson’s shoulder injury, he expressed his hope that the Scotland skipper can make a swift recovery, benefiting both his club and country as they aim for European Championships qualification.
The injury raises concerns about Robertson’s fitness for Liverpool’s upcoming Merseyside derby against Everton on October 21.
Robertson will not be part of the national team’s preparations for their friendly against France on Tuesday. Clarke confirmed that Robertson will return to Liverpool for further medical assessments.
Clarke stated, “Obviously he hurt his shoulder. We’ll have a look, and he’ll go back to his club.”
“It always seems to happen when you lose one player in that position, so we lose Kieran Tierney on the left side, and Andy has picked up a shoulder injury. We’ll assess it, see how it settles down, and hopefully, he can return to his club as soon as possible to be ready to assist us in November.”
Jurgen Klopp, Liverpool’s manager, will anxiously await the diagnosis of his first-choice left-back. Meanwhile, Klopp will also be monitoring Kostas Tsimikas’ participation in Greece’s two European Championships qualifiers against the Republic of Ireland and Holland.
Klopp has recently welcomed Trent Alexander-Arnold back to the squad after a hamstring injury that sidelined him for four matches with Liverpool, as well as during his time with the England squad.
Youngster Luke Chambers made his first appearance for the club as a late substitute in the Carabao Cup victory over Leicester City. He is currently with the England Euro Elite League side, formerly known as the under-20s.