Jurgen Klopp: 'Philippe Coutinho unlikely to return in 2016'

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has said that he will not rush the return of midfielder Philippe Coutinho.

When Coutinho suffered an ankle injury against Sunderland last month, he was regarded as Liverpool's best player this season, but Klopp has played down talk of a possible return in the next week by revealing that the Brazilian is unlikely to feature over the Christmas period.

The 49-year-old told reporters: "He was in a very good way, then a reaction, but he's in a good way again. I don't think it will be a long time.

"Everybody was thinking about the City game for example, this will be very unlikely. It was a dream of Phil. It's not more likely than before, but I don't want to say impossible."

Coutinho has scored a total of six goals in 14 games in all competitions this season.