LIVERPOOL have been handed an injury boost ahead of the return of the Premier League with Arthur Melo set to return from injury.
The Brazilian has played just 13 minutes of senior football for the Reds since joining on loan from Juventus – none of which have come in the Prem.
And while he was originally brought in to be a back-up option, he then suffered a long-term muscular injury in training.
The injury was set to keep him out for between three and four months.
However, the 26-year-old has recovered ahead of schedule and is now set to return to the fold at Liverpool.
Fabrizio Romano has reported Arthur underwent a medical check which came back with a positive outlook.
He adds, new checks in the coming days and weeks have been pencilled in to keep tabs on his faster-than-expected recovery.
Jurgen Klopp’s side have struggled to gain momentum this season – with the club languishing down in sixth place.
After a patchy start to the season which saw them fail to win any of their first three league matches, they finally managed to put some wins together before the streak ended abruptly.
Indeed, this has been a theme of Liverpool’s season, failing to win three games in a row in the league thus far.
But they will have a chance to rectify this when they face Aston Villa on boxing day.
Although, newly appointed boss Unai Emery could upset the apple cart after already causing an upset by beating an in-form Manchester United in his first game in charge.
Ahead of the return of the Premier League, Liverpool have been taking part in friendlies, but their clash against Lyon saw talisman Mohamed Salah miss a penalty in a 3-1 defeat to Lyon.
