Liverpool handed major selection boost as five players in contention for Everton
Liverpool's South American contingent have put themselves in line for derby duty against Everton on Saturday - as Cody Gakpo made a significant step in his return to fitness.
Alexis Mac Allister, Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz and Alisson Becker all trained at the AXA Training Centre on Thursday morning despite having featured in World Cup qualifiers for their respective countries in South America less than 36 hours earlier.
The previous international break saw them only resume training the day before the resumption of the Premier League at Wolves, where Mac Allister was substituted at half-time after a poor performance affected by fatigue and both Nunez and Diaz only emerged from the bench in the second half.
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However, the earlier return of the quartet to Kirkby - Mac Allister aided by travelling back on a private jet along with other European-based Argentina players - means there is an increased chance of them all being in consideration to start when the 243rd Merseyside derby kicks off at 12.30pm on Saturday.
There could, though, be a question mark over the fitness of Nunez, with the striker having suffered cramp towards the end of Uruguay's 2-0 win over Brazil.
Gakpo, who has missed the last two games with a knee issue that also forced him out of the Holland squad last week, was also back doing ball work on the pitch with the returning internationals, indicating there is an outside chance he could make the matchday squad at the weekend.
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