Crocked: Kelly receives treatment after injuring
his hamstring at West Ham
Martin Kelly has had his worst fears confirmed after he
was ruled out for up to five weeks with hamstring
damage.
The Liverpool right back, 20, pulled up sharply in the first
half of Sunday's 3-1 defeat at West Ham and he underwent a scan on
Merseyside yesterday.
Liverpool had hoped that Kelly, one of their success stories
this season, would only miss this Sunday's showdown with Manchester
United but he will now be absent for a chunk of the run-in.
Aside from United's visit, Kelly will miss both legs of the
Europa League last-16 clash with Braga and a trip to Sunderland on
March 20.
He is also almost certainly out of the England Under 21 friendly
against Iceland at Deepdale on March 28.
Although Kelly has flourished since Kenny Dalglish took charge
in early January, this is the latest frustrating setback in his
short Liverpool career - last season he had long layoffs with knee
and ankle injuries - but he is trying to remain positive.
He said: 'I am usually a quick healer and we have good medical
staff at the club, so hopefully I will be back soon.
'We were all disappointed with the result and performance on
Sunday and we've got to put it right against Manchester
United.'