Cape Town - Liverpool manager has confirmed that defender Nathaniel Clyne will be sidelined for six months after suffering a cruciate ligament injury.

Klopp told Liverpool's club website: "What can I say other than how gutted we all are for Clyney. He was training and playing so well - he was in outstanding shape.

"Clearly an injury of this nature isn't a happy moment for any player, but the silver lining for him is that, according to the medical guys, it's a straightforward ACL injury. This means fixing it and coming back from it should follow a path that is free from pitfalls and complications.

"At the moment there isn't much more to say beyond we'll all support Clyney in whatever way we can and we look forward to seeing him back on the pitch as soon as responsibly possible.

"He is such a sound professional and is naturally very fit and strong, so all these things are in his favour."

Meanwhile, the Reds have ended their three-match US tour without any victory following a 2-2 draw against Sporting Lisbon in the final encounter in North America. 

Liverpool will now travel to Scotland for a friendly against Napoli on Sunday before jetting off to France for their final match abroad against Lyon before returning to the UK.

The Merseyside will then take on Manchester City in the yearly curtain raiser Community Shield fixture on Sunday, August 4.

On Friday, August 9 Liverpool welcome Premier League returnees Norwich City to Anfield for the official start of the new campaign.