Northern Ireland and Liverpool defender Conor Bradley faces months out after suffering a serious knee injury
12:44, 11 Jan 2026Updated 14:21, 11 Jan 2026
Conor Bradley(Image: ©INPHO/Presseye/Jonathan Porter)
Conor Bradley is set for surgery on a severe knee injury, ruling him out for the remainder of Liverpool’s season.
The Northern Ireland star has not suffered an ACL injury, but there is damage to the bone and ligaments in his left knee.
Bradley, who was stretchered off towards the end of Thursday’s goalless draw with Premier League leaders Arsenal, will undergo surgery in the next few days. This will sideline him for the rest of the domestic season.
He also faces a battle to be fit for this summer’s World Cup, should Northern Ireland secure qualification through the play-offs. Michael O’Neill’s side face Italy in a World Cup play-off semi-final on March 26.
Liverpool confirmed that Bradley had “sustained a significant knee injury”, adding in a statement: “No timeframe is being placed on his return to playing at this stage of the process.”
Bradley has made 21 appearances this season, having missed several matches due to a hamstring issue.
This blow leaves head coach Arne Slot with Jeremie Frimpong, who has had his own injury troubles since joining from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer, and Joe Gomez, who is only just returning from a hamstring problem, as cover. However, neither can be considered a natural right-back.
Slot has been forced to deploy midfielders Dominik Szoboszlai and Curtis Jones in the position this season.
Bradley’s first match on the sidelines will be Monday’s FA Cup third-round fixture at Anfield against League One side Barnsley, and Slot has vowed not to repeat the team selection errors that cost him dearly in last season’s competition.
With Liverpool soaring in the Premier League and Champions League, and having reached the Carabao Cup final, the Dutchman opted for a weakened side in their fourth-round clash at Championship outfit Plymouth, resulting in a 1-0 defeat.
However, despite several players being unavailable for Barnsley’s visit, there will be no wholesale changes at Anfield this time around.
“Last season I made the decision that some players needed to rest in the FA Cup because you can’t play every player every single time, but it is obvious we are not in the League Cup any more,” Slot said.
“The FA Cup has always been very important for us, but sometimes in a season when you are still competing for the League Cup, the Champions League and the league – with the amount of players we had last season and have this season – you have to make choices.
“But I can guarantee you that on Monday you will see all the players you saw at Arsenal, maybe with some changes, but they will be on the bench so that’s going to be different from last season.”
If last season’s lesson wasn’t sufficient warning for Slot in his debut campaign in English football, Monday’s opponents provide another reminder of the competition’s unpredictability. Back in 2008, during their previous encounter as a Championship outfit, Brian Howard netted a dramatic 90th-minute winner to secure a stunning 2-1 triumph over Liverpool.
Whilst Barnsley currently sit 17th in League One, Slot won’t be taking them lightly.
“We all know in the FA Cup or cup competitions things can happen and you cannot compare Plymouth away and the players who played back then to Barnsley at home,” he said.
“The last time Barnsley played us they beat us, but that was 2008 in our stadium, so we take them as we took Plymouth – very serious.”