Jurgen Klopp is reluctant to rush Adam Lallana back to Liverpool action.
Lallana missed the first three months of the Reds’ campaign with a thigh injury picked up against Bayern Munich in pre-season.
The England international recently returned to training following the lengthy lay-off period in time for Saturday’s visit of Southampton to Anfield.
However Klopp remains cautious about Lallana’s first-team involvement and ruled out a potential starting berth against his former club.
He said: “Adam is in training, but now [only] since three days, four days.
“It’s fantastic that he’s back, he’s lost nothing. But in the next few weeks we have games [every] three days.
“There’s no rushing it, even though everyone who knows Adam can imagine how ready he is to be part of the squad again. We will see what we’ll do.
“It’s completely different to Sadio [Mane]. [Lallana] was much longer out. He’s a fantastic player, but we want to have him for the season, [not one game].
“The player wants to be back immediately and I’m now the bad guy who says ‘not today’! I only do it for him, for the club.
“What can I say? We will see, it depends how the other players are.
“We will use him for sure, but to bring him in now for 90 minutes is an absolute no. It will not happen.”