Emile Heskey will miss Saturday's derby clash with Everton after being ruled out for up to three weeks with a hamstring injury.
The England striker came off in the FA Cup win over Newcastle on Saturday and as well as being a doubt for Premiership matches against Bolton and Manchester City he could also miss the friendly international in Portugal on February 18th.
Heskey's injury is a blow to manager Gerard Houllier as his options up front are limited. Michael Owen is still finding his way back to fitness after six weeks out while Milan Baros, out since August with a broken leg, only makes his comeback bid in the reserves this week.
Florent Sinama-Pongolle has a groin injury, Vladimir Smicer is struggling with an Achilles problem while El-Hadji Diouf is on international duty at the African Nations Cup with Senegal.