Diogo Jota is set to step up in his long-awaited Liverpool comeback this week.
Jota has not featured for Jurgen Klopp’s side since suffering a knee injury during December’s Champions League dead rubber against Midtjylland.
But the Portugal international, who scored nine times in his first 17 games, will complete the final steps of his rehabilitation by resuming full training.
Sunday’s trip to Sheffield United is expected to arrive too early for Jota however Chelsea’s visit to Anfield on March 4 appears a realistic return date.
Since his last appearance, Liverpool have lost their grip on the Premier League title and currently face a battle to secure a top four finish this season.
The defending champions are yet to discover the full extent of Jordan Henderson’s groin injury following last weekend’s home defeat to Everton.
Klopp admitted following his side’s first loss to their local rivals at Anfield since 1999 that the immediate prognosis did not appear promising for his captain.
He said: “It’s the groin/adductor region and nobody in the medical department was positive about it.
“It doesn’t look good, but we have to wait, of course, for the scan tomorrow, hopefully.”
Meanwhile Liverpool are still to discover where their Champions League last 16 return leg against RB Leipzig will be played due to coronavirus restrictions.
Last week’s tie with the Bundesliga outfit was hosted in Budapest with Germany’s quarantine measures preventing the visitors from travelling in.
Leipzig will still be subject to those same sanctions if they travel to Anfield for the March 10 encounter, forcing UEFA to consider a second neutral venue.
Stadiums in Holland, Belgium and a return to the Puskas Arena, where Liverpool won 2-0, are being assessed by European football’s governing body.