Liverpool striker Hugo Ekitike will miss the next nine months having ruptured his Achilles against Paris Saint-Germain, eSPORTY understands.
In a cruel blow for the Frenchman, the injury will see him miss out on competing at the 2026 World Cup in North America.
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Ekitike sustained the knock midway through the first half of their Champions League exit on Tuesday night when he stepped back onto his right foot to accelerate, only to crumple to the turf at Anfield.
The 23-year-old appeared to clutch the lower part of his right Achilles while down as his teammates attempted to comfort him.
And Liverpool’s fears regarding Ekitike have now been realised.
He will now return to the pitch until 2027 in a huge blow for the Merseyside outfit.
Following Ekitike’s withdrawal in the 32 minutes, he was subsequently replaced by Mohamed Salah, who is set to depart the Reds at the end of the season.
What did Arne Slot say about Hugo Ekitike’s injury?
Speaking after Liverpool’s 2-0 loss to PSG on Tuesday, which sealed their exit from the Champions League quarter-finals via a 4-0 aggregate scoreline, Reds boss Arne Slot conceded he was worried for his star forward.
“Not too good. We could all see it didn’t look good,” Slot said on Ekitike’s injury.
“Let’s wait and see what it will be. In the second half he went home and I haven’t seen him yet.
“As it seems to be, losing a player is something we have had many times this season.
“But it is especially hard for him because you never want to be injured, especially at this time of the season.”
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Ibrahima Konate, who plays alongside Ekitike for France as well as with Liverpool, added: “To be fair, it’s bad.
“I don’t know… I heard many things, but I don’t want to talk about that and with the World Cup coming up, it’s hard for him.”
On this week’s episode of TalkSPORT’s Inside Liverpool, Jermaine Pennant, ex-player for the Merseyside-based club was concerned about the mental battle the Frenchman will face during his recovery.
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“We spent £200million on two strikers in the summer and they are going to go two seasons without playing with each other properly. No matter what manager you have got in charge, that’s going to hurt your team,” said Pennant.
“It’s really unfortunate and my heart goes out to Ekitike. The longest I have been out with an injury was three months with a fractured tibia. It’s hard because physically you have to recover but mentally it’s worse, you have to see the lads training and preparing for a game every week.
“There is nothing worse than being a professional footballer and not being able to play in matches, you need a good support system around you.”
He added: “Certain injuries take a massive toll on the way you come back. We saw it with Virgil Van Dijk with his knee injury, it took him almost a whole season to really get back to himself.
“He wasn’t committing to challenges and was timid when tracking back, he wasn’t playing at full throttle because he was a little bit weary and Ekitike is going to have to experience that. With the injury he has, some players don’t come back the same.”
Reds’ European dream comes to an end
The injury to Ekitike added to what was a frustrating night in the rain for Liverpool against their European rivals.
Slot’s side put in a spirited display against the reigning European champions as they out-shot PSG by 21 shots to 11.
However, Luis Enrique’s side made the most of their chances as Ousmane Dembele’s double wrapped up the contest.
With Liverpool’s exit from the Champions League now sealed, attention shifts to the Premier League.
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Slot’s side sit fifth with 52 points, four clear of sixth-placed Chelsea.
Crucially, Liverpool occupy the last Champions League spot as the Premier League will have five teams competing in Europe’s premier club competition next season.
Ekitike injury hands Slot major selection headache
However, the loss of Ekitike means Slot will have to get creative with his attacking options as record signing Alexander Isak is yet to return to full fitness from a broken fibula.
Slot confirmed Isak would only feature for 45 minutes against PSG and that proved to be the case, as he was replaced at half time by Cody Gakpo.
Should Slot continue to slowly ease Isak back in, Gakpo looms as the logical option to play as a striker.
The Netherlands international, who predominantly features on the left wing, has played up top for the Reds on ten occasions this season.
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Gakpo’s most recent outing as a striker for Liverpool came last Saturday during a 2-0 win over Fulham.
Slot’s side will look to return to winning ways on Sunday when they face local rivals Everton, with kick-off scheduled for 2pm.
