Nobody wants him at Liverpool any more and this is what Thiago looks like after months out of action

Thiago Alcántara will have to wait. The Spanish midfielder, who played his last official game for the Reds last April (against West Ham), is not planning to wear the Liverpool shirt anytime soon. Jürgen Klopp made this clear at the press conference ahead of this weekend's clash with Luton Town: "Thiago (Alcántara) is an ongoing thing. We can't put pressure on him, but we hope he will be back, I would say, at the beginning of the year."

The hip injury that led to surgery at the tail end of last season has kept the Spanish midfielder out of action. While Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch and Dominik Szoboszlai are still adapting to the Reds and getting minutes under Jürgen Klopp, Thiago Alcántara has watched the performances of his main competitors for a midfield berth from the sidelines. While the new signings are performing up to expectations, having a player of the Spanish international's stature will always be a positive.

"We are already in November. That would mean another four weeks, I would say that's probably a realistic thing to try. I'm looking forward to him coming back. He's an exceptional player. I understand why you ask, but we can't have a week-by-week update because not much will change at the moment," the German coach added in his press appearance. So 2024 could finally be Thiago Alcántara's moment. At the same time, it will be a complicated year. The 32-year-old midfielder will be free to negotiate his future with any club from next January, as his contract with the Anfield club expires in June 2024.

This is what Thiago looks like 

Although the Spanish midfielder has made around 30 appearances in the three seasons he has played for Liverpool - 30, 39 and 28 respectively - physical problems have always been the big 'but' in his time at Anfield. At the age of 32 and with Saudi Arabian football knocking on his door, as it happened during the last summer transfer window, Thiago Alcántara's future is up in the air. Even more so given that he has yet to make his debut for the Reds in the 2023-2024 season. The most recent publicly released image of Thiago was from his Instagram account in August and shows several physical changes and even his haircut.