Adam Lallana Injury Return Will Not Be Rushed – Brendan Rodgers

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers is under no pressure to rush Adam Lallana back from a knee injury which has sidelined the England international for the next six weeks.

Lallana will miss the Reds' first five games of the regular season and England's friendly with Norway and opening Euro 2016 qualifier against Switzerland after suffering a knee ligament knock in training.

The 26 year old was expected to play a pivotal role in Liverpool's domestic and European challenge this season but faces a wait before kick-starting his Anfield career, however Rodgers will not rush the comeback of the former Southampton ace.

"Of course it was very disappointing - it's probably going to be four to six weeks," Rodgers said.

"He has looked fantastic in training; it was just a very simple exercise with no pressure. The medical team are looking closely at that at the moment.

"We're hopeful that he'll come back fairly quickly, but there's no rush. He's a fantastic player, we just need to get him back fit and well because it's a long season."

Lallana, who played for England at the 2014 World Cup, was nominated for the PFA Players' Player of the Year award last season after enjoying a stellar campaign with Southampton but has undertaken a heavy workload over the last 12 months.

But as one of five new additions this summer, Rodgers will hope Lallana's absence until at least September will not be felt, given how Liverpool have added depth to a squad which looked thread bare at times last season.

Rickie Lambert, Lazar Markovic, Emre Can and Dejan Lovren are among the other additions to a Liverpool squad who return to the Champions League for the first time since 2009 while are also set to contest for the Premier League title once again.